NEWS IN BRIEF...


US-based private equity firm Arcane Capital Partners has acquired HDPE conduit manufac- turer Petroflex of Texas, and Kansas-based Wescon Plastics, which specialises in engineered resins for tight tolerance products. Between them, the two acquisitions are worth around US$100 million. This brings Arcane’s growing portfolio to five acquired companies since December 2021. www.petroflexna.com


ADS has reported a fall in both sales and profits in Q3. The pipe manufacturer saw sales drop nearly 10% (to US$2.2 billion) in the first nine months of its financial year. At the same time, profit fell nearly 2% to around US$418 million. Turnover for the full year is expected to be around US$2.8bn. www.ads-pipe.com


Pipe division falls back at Georg Fischer in 2023


Georg Fischer says that its piping systems division reported a sales decline of nearly 16% in 2023. The division reported


sales of just under CHF2 billion (US$2.2bn) for the year. For the same period, profitability (EBIT) fell around 5% to CHF275m (US$308m). The company said that demand in segments such as microelectronics, process automation and water treatment remained high. The division continues to


focus on solutions for renewable energy, lithium extraction and refinement and battery production. As well as constructing a


production facility in Yang- zhou (China) – which it says is the largest, most efficient GF Piping Systems facility in Asia – the company made two major acquisitions. These were Uponor of Finland and Corys Piping Systems of UAE. Both were fully consolidated in November 2023. Adding these acquisitions would have


taken overall sales to CHF4bn. “Swift integration of Uponor and Corys Piping Systems – two complemen- tary businesses to GF Piping Systems – will further support the ambition to become a global leader in sustainable water and flow solutions,” said the company. GF expects economic conditions to remain “generally subdued” this year, but it expects gradual improvement. ❯ www.georgfischer.com


Rollepaal signs India supply deal


Rollepaal has signed an deal to supply PVC-O pipe machinery to Sintex of India. The Dutch company will


provide Sintex with its RBlue extrusion lines to make pipes for potable water.


“Sintex has been at the


forefront of innovations in this segment with many breakthrough technologies,” said Ashish Prasad, CEO of Sintex. “Securing PVC-O technology from Rollepaal


marks the next significant leap for our company.” Schemes to improve tap


water supply, run by India’s government, are expected to raise demand for PVC-O. ❯ www.rollepaal.com


Uponor results hit by “turbulent markets”


Uponor, the Finnish pipe manufac- turer, says that “turbulent markets” dragged down its results in 2023 – with declines in both sales and profits. Net sales for the year were around €1.2 billion (US$1.3bn), a fall of nearly 12%. Comparable operating profit exceeded €150m (US$164m), a fall of about 2% compared to 2022. The company said that construction markets in both Europe and North America continued to be affecting by financing costs. Over the year, the North American market proved more resilient than that in Europe, said Uponor. In Q4, sales were flat at about €277m (US$303m), while comparable


8


Rauterkus: “Uponor will be delisted


and transfer to the ownership of Georg Fischer”


CEO of Uponor. “In the seasonally slow quarter, we achieved a strong comparable operating profit margin.” Building solutions in Europe saw a 17% fall in sales for the year, but a 23% dip in profitability, while the same division in North America saw sales rise by nearly 4% as operating profit grew by 19%. Sales in the company’s infrastructure division slumped by 27%. During 2023, Uponor was acquired


operating profit more than doubled to around €28m (US$31m). “In the fourth quarter of 2023, we continued to build margin resilience under volatile market conditions,” said Michael Rauterkus, president and


PIPE & PROFILE EXTRUSION | Spring 2024


by Georg Fischer, so has not issued a guidance for the next financial year. “Going forward, Uponor will be delisted and transfer to the ownership of Georg Fischer,” said Rauterkus. ❯ www.uponor.com


www.pipeandprofile.com


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