NEWS


Aliaxis reports flat sales but healthy profit growth for 2019


Belgian pipe manufacturer Aliaxis reported flat sales in 2019 – though profit growth was healthy. The company posted


sales of more than €3.1 billion (US$3.3bn) in 2019, an increase of less than 1% compared to the previous year. It said that strong performances in India and the USA were offset by lower results in Asia and South America. The strength of the US dollar and Indian rupee against the Euro helped to boost sales performance by 1.5%.


“Last year saw significant


growth in our key geogra- phies such as India and the US, supported by a number of growth investments,” said Laurent Lenoir, CEO of Aliaxis. “This was under- mined by lower results in Asia-Pacific and Latin America.”


Despite stagnant sales,


profitability (EBITDA) rose by 6% to €440 million (US$469m). This figure including two adjusted items – related to earlier divestments and ongoing restructuring. Without the exceptional items, EBIT alone fell by nearly 3% to €300m (US$320m) in 2019. In the EMEA region, the building segment per- formed well – with strong performances in France, Spain and Italy offset by weaker conditions in the UK and Germany. However, UK and German sales were key to the success of the infrastructure segment. “Our industry segment faced a contrasted perfor- mance,” said the company. “France and Spain (irriga- tion) performed very well behind sustained demand, while domestic German demand remained soft.”


the year by withdrawing its distribution operation in Brazil and exiting the competitive Mexican market.


In Asia-Pacific, Australia


Lenoir: “Significant growth in key geographies such as India and the USA”


In the Americas, a record


year in the USA was partially offset by a weak perfor- mance in Canada. During 2019, Aliaxis acquired US-based Silverline Plastics – which has four production plants – for €134m (US$143m). Latin America performed weakly, and Aliaxis ended


experienced a slowdown and New Zealand was flat. However, in India, the company achieved “another record year of sales in spite of the weaker agricultural season”, with growth fuelled by housing-related initiatives. In March of this year the company sold its US distribution subsidiary, Harrington Industrial Plastics, to private equity firm Nautic (see separate story on this page). On Coronavirus, the company said: “We are monitoring the situation closely and taking all contingency measures to protect our business, employees and customers.” � www.aliaxis.com


Equity firm buys pipe distributor


US private equity firm Nautic Partners has become the new owner of pipe distributor Harrington Industrial Plastics, in partnership with the company’s management. Founded in 1959, Harrington distributes corrosion-resistant products for industrial fluids and high purity applications. It employs around 550 people in 55 branches across the USA. Its products are used in many end markets, including water treatment, chemicals and food and beverage production. It focuses on corrosive applications that generally need


www.pipeandprofile.com


speciality products. “We are delighted to have found a


like-minded partner in Nautic,” said Eben Lenderking, CEO of Harrington. “We have been growing at rates well above the market for several years. We look forward to working in close partnership with Nautic to to continue our strong growth.” Harrington has a strong competitive position in a fragmented market, which has resulted in strong customer retention and satisfaction, he said. Chris Pierce, a managing director of Nautic, added: “Harrington has an


experienced management team that has accelerated growth in recent years. We are thrilled to partner with them to support continued organic growth, as well as pursue selective acquisitions. Additionally, we’re excited to add another investment to our distribution portfolio within Nautic’s industrials group.”


Aliaxis CEO Laurent Lenoir added: “Harrington has achieved new levels of profitability, and become a market leading distribution company.” � www.hipco.com � www.nautic.com


May 2020 | PIPE & PROFILE EXTRUSION 5


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50