Gooch & Housego Regulatory News (GHH)

1 Apr 2005 07:00

Gooch & Housego PLC01 April 2005 1 April 2005 GOOCH & HOUSEGO PLC New Global Headquarters Site Update Gooch & Housego, the specialist manufacturer of acousto-optic and electro-opticdevices, precision optical components, crystals, and instruments for measuringoptical radiation, today announces that it expects to complete the purchase ofland and buildings at Dowlish Ford near Ilminster, currently comprising 67,000sq ft of buildings on 7.8 acres of land, on 6th April 2005. This represents amilestone in the history of Gooch & Housego allowing extensive scope forexpansion and securing the company's long-term future in Ilminster. The site will be developed through a mixture of renovation and new purpose builtfacilities to become the Company's global headquarters and UK opticalmanufacturing facility. The re-development will commence this summer, with fulloccupation expected by financial year-end, September 2006. The new site, currently owned and until today operated by Clarks, the shoemanufacturer, is located close to Gooch & Housego's existing 25,000 sq ft wherethe Company's expansion has been restricted by a lack of space and inefficientworkflows. The Company's high precision optical products are finished in anultra clean environment to achieve the very high quality demanded by our globalcustomer base. The new factory will provide this environment and improveefficiency, while investment in new plant and machinery will allow the Companyto expand its operations and create the showcase facility originally envisionedby co-founder Archie Gooch, who has recently retired as Chairman. For further information:Gareth Jones 01460 52271Gooch & Housego PLC Andrew Edwards 0207 710 7600Oriel Securities Tom Carroll/Nicola Cronk 0207 466 5000Buchanan Communications This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange