The trading challenges of 2020 are “not how I pictured our 40th anniversary year”, Balmoral Group boss Jim Milne said on Christmas Eve.
Mr Milne, who celebrates his 80th birthday today, launched his Aberdeen-based engineering business four decades ago.
It has been providing engineered products and services to the energy, engineering, marine, building, polymer engineering and processing sectors since 1980.
Reporting results for the year to March 31 2020, Balmoral said core business turnover rose to a record £137 million.
This was up from £98m in 2019, a 40% jump year-on-year, while pre-tax profits rocketed to £10.3m, from £2m previously.
Export sales grew by 34% to £105.7m, from £79m, and payroll numbers increased by 61 to 687.
Balmoral’s figures strip out the negative financial impact of a now defunct Norwegian subsidiary on its 2018-19 accounts.
Trading conditions have, of course, changed since March and while a backlog of orders saw it through the summer, the pandemic has caught up with Balmoral and its manufacturing operations have slowed as a result.
Mr Milne, group chairman and managing director, said: “When we started FY2020-21, our 40th in business, we had a very strong order book and were hoping to break more records but, sadly, this is now looking unlikely.
“Under the circumstances we have done well but are now seeing all our markets face their own challenges.
“Our people adapted well to home working and the measures put in place to ensure safe manufacturing operations.
“Everyone has done a remarkable job in maintaining a strong market position.”
Mr Milne said he had never faced a trading period like it, adding: “This is not how I pictured our 40th anniversary year but I am proud of the way our teams responded to everything that faced them. We have a great culture across all Balmoral divisions.
“We are also fortunate to have a strong balance sheet and good liquidity which will help sustain a leading position in all our markets. We look forward to markedly improved trading conditions in the years ahead.”
Balmoral said it had about 100 employees currently on furlough and restructuring at its tanks subsidiary earlier this year led to “minimal” redundancies.
Although the company’s key revenue stream remains buoyancy, protection and insulation products and services for the oil and gas sector, subsidiary Balmoral Comtec has been growing its business in the offshore wind industry – winning orders for its patented cable protection system, FibreFlex.
Balmoral’s tank design and manufacturing subsidiary has this year introduced a new line of products with an eye on the international market. They are manufactured at a recently expanded facility in South Yorkshire.
The group’s property arm, Balmoral Park, and business support organisation Elevator developed a third part of its Balmoral One office pavilion as the first two were operating at near-full capacity.
Balmoral also holds 70% stakes in north-east firms Ace Winches and Blaze Manufacturing Solutions, both of which are seen as having “considerable growth potential”.
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