Last checked at 16 Dec 2022 13:49
16 December 2022
Chamberlin plc
("Chamberlin", the "Company" or the "Group")
Corporate Update
Chamberlin plc (AIM: CMH.L), the specialist castings and engineering group, announces the following corporate update.
Headlines
· Russell Ductile Castings returns best ever monthly performance, exceeding £1 million monthly revenue for the first time, in November 2022
· Investment in new plant and equipment at RDC now complete
· Group defined benefit pension scheme now in a surplus position
Russell Ductile Castings ("RDC")
As previously announced, RDC, the Group's Scunthorpe based foundry and the UK's leading provider of large, technically challenging Cast Iron products, has now completed a programme of investment in new plant and equipment which strengthens its position as a key supplier to the renewable offshore energy, energy generation and construction industries.
This investment is a key milestone for RDC and positions the business as the UKs largest foundry to provide castings ranging from 100kg to 7000kg, increasing RDC's ability to produce large castings over three tons by around 30%. The rapidly growing trend for localised supply chains and manufacturing re-shoring, coupled with RDC's focus on the renewable energy market, has seen orders books reach record levels in the last 12 months.
Pleasingly, RDC exceeded £1.0 million of revenue in November 2022 for the first time and reported an order book of around £4.0 million, remaining on track to deliver to the Board's expectations. This strong financial performance, along with a strong sales enquiry pipeline of approximately £17 million, underpins the decision to make the investment and capitalise on market opportunities.
Group Pension Scheme
The Group has one defined benefit pension scheme, which is closed to future accrual. As reported in the Company's Final Results in November 2022, the defined benefit pension scheme moved from a liability position of £1.2 million at 31 May 2021 to a £0.1 million surplus at 31 May 2022, as reduced liabilities arising from an increase in bond yields and Group contributions of £0.9 million more than offset a reduction in the market value of scheme assets.
The triennial valuation as at 31 March 2022 is currently in progress and the Company has appointed BDO UK LLP to advise the Chamberlin Board. The Company is seeking to ensure that current market conditions, the Group's improved covenant strength and the significant one-off payment of £0.6 million made in May 2022 from the RDC property sale and leaseback, are fully reflected in the new deficit valuation and any subsequent recovery plan payments required by the Company. This gives the Board confidence of a positive outcome and the ability to ensure that any ongoing deficit is minimised.
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