AGM Statement

RNS Number : 2827I

Michelmersh Brick Holdings PLC

13 June 2011

 



13 June 2011

Michelmersh Brick Holdings PLC

("Michelmersh Brick Holdings" or the "Group")

AGM Statement

Michelmersh Brick Holdings PLC (AIM:MBH), the specialist brick, land development and landfill company, announces that at its AGM to be held later today, Eric Gadsden, Chairman will make the following statement:

"I am pleased to report that sales orders, despatches and production activity continue to be strong at all our sites, particularly Freshfield Lane and Blockleys where some products are subject to extended delivery schedules.  Group sales volumes are ahead of budget for the year to date.

As an industry, however, maintaining margins in the light of increasing energy prices is a key challenge. At Michelmersh Brick Holdings we continue to direct our efforts towards ensuring that our costs are well controlled and we have and continue to benefit from our investment in modern, more energy efficient plants at all our works in recent years.  Furthermore our premium position in the market has enabled us to maintain margins despite the prevailing market conditions.

Having successfully completed the integration of Freshfield Lane into the Group our focus now is to maximise margins across the business. As well as further improving and honing our current product range we intend to develop a number of new products which will sell at premium prices, building on our success in the specification market.

The restructured Blockleys works is performing well with strong prices and our Terracotta business continues to attract strong demand for its specialist products.

We have had success with new products, such as Anthracite bricks, at The Downs, Wimbledon and Comus Place, London, SE17, both high quality residential schemes. In addition we have demonstrated our ability to cross sell by winning the brick specification for Abraham Darby, a new Academy in Telford, Shropshire for a Freshfield Lane product. This project is now nearing completion.

We continue to see major changes within the industry and will be watching these closely for potential opportunities to develop our business whether organically or by acquisition."

For further information:
Michelmersh Brick Holdings          Martin Warner, CEO Stephen Morgan, Finance Director	01442 870227
Arbuthnot Securities                                     Tom Griffiths/Adam Lloyd	020 7012 2000
Tavistock Communications         Jeremy Carey/Amy Walker	020 7920 3150

Notes to Editors:

Michelmersh Brick Holdings PLC is a holding company with seven subsidiaries: Dunton, Michelmersh Brick & Tile, Charnwood, Blockleys, Taperell Taylor, Hathern Terra Cotta and Freshfield Lane. Between the subsidiaries it operates a fully integrated business combining the manufacture of clay bricks and paviors, landfill operations and land development.

Established in 1997 by Martin Warner, Chief Executive and Eric Gadsden, Chairman, the Company has grown through acquisition and organic growth into a profitable, cash generative and asset rich business, producing approx. 70 million clay bricks, tiles and paviors per annum.  MBH currently owns most of the UK's premium manufacturing brands and is one of the leading specification brick and clay paving manufacturers.

It has completed contracts for a number of high profile projects including the refurbishment of the British Library, St. Pancras Station, Harrods, the Savoy Hotel and the Victoria & Albert Museum, and the construction of a new campus at Kobe University, Japan.

Further information on the Company can be found at www.mbhplc.co.uk 

 

END

 

 

AGMFMMFTMBJBBPB