One of Ireland's largest plastics processors still privately owned, Athlone Extrusions (Grace Road, Co. West Meath, IRL-Athlone), recently placed 7,252,893 ordinary shares worth IEP .91 each on the Irish and London Stock Exchanges. The company is a major ABS and polystyrene sheet extruder and also manufactures PE. Its products are sold to vacuum moulders for a wide variety of industrial end use markets.

Following a management buyout in 1990, the company has enjoyed rapid growth. Turnover rose 46% over the period 1992-1996. For the fiscal year ending 30 September 1997 it increased by a further 11% to IEP 24.3m (IEP 21.9m) while pretax profit rose 29% to IEP 3.75m (IEP 2.43m). Volume sales climbed from 9,597 t in 1992 to around 15,000 t in 1997. Trading in the first quarter of fiscal 1997/98 is described as satisfactory and prospects for the full year encouraging. Athlone's Irish plant currently has a capacity of 20,000 t following a 3-year IEP 7m investment programm which has seen the addition of four new extrusion lines.

Athlone Extrusions has over 400 customers in 22 countries. Some 67% of sales are in the UK market, 26% in European and overseas markets and 6% in Ireland. The flotation is designed to enhance the growth potential of the group and enable it to achieve product and geographical expansion.

READER SERVICE: Listing prospectus for Athlone Extrusions plc : PIE-No. 42022, DEM 24.00.