Spectris the instrumentation and controls company, owner of brands such as Malvern Instruments, PANalytical and Particle Measuring Systems, has today announced full year results for the year ending December 31 2016.
The year ended with a strong Q4 which appears to have offset difficult trading conditions experienced earlier in the year. Reported sales are 13% up on the previous year, largely due to exchange rate fluctuations. Like for like sales, which is reported at constant exchange rates and excludes the impact of acquisitions during the year, saw a 2% decline.
The company reports good strategic progress in transitioning to a customer focussed, solutions strategy, part of which was the earlier announcement that Malvern Instruments and PANalytical were to merge. This is expected to provide a more collaborative approach across the customer base served by both companies.
Commenting on the results, John O’Higgins, Chief Executive, said: “The year ended well with LFL sales growth in the final quarter following challenging trading conditions in the first three quarters. We continue to make good strategic progress as we transition our customer offering from the supply of products towards the provision of solutions encompassing hardware, software and services, responding to our customer’s needs. As customers increasingly require an integrated solution, we are strategically positioning Spectris to align with their needs and this is transforming our business.
We added further software and service capability to the Group in the acquisitions made during the year, the most significant being Millbrook, a high quality automotive test services platform which enables us to expand our offering to automotive customers in conjunction with our existing products and software. We also took the decision to merge two of our larger operating companies, Malvern Instruments and PANalytical, enabling a more collaborative approach across the customers served by both companies.
We launched Project Uplift, a key enabler in the delivery of our strategy, aimed at reducing complexity, increasing efficiency and effectiveness and freeing up resources to stimulate growth.
End-market growth in the near-term is expected to be modest. However, the evolution now underway within Spectris is an exciting time for the business and will further enable and support delivery of our solutions strategy.”