Carclo (Ossett, West Yorkshire / UK; www.carclo.co.uk) increased its pretax profits by 10% in the first six months of financial year 2008 (30 September) to GBP 2.6m (EUR 3.1m) on sales of GBP 42.7m. This was thanks to its strategy to move away from lower-margin automotive moulding and concentrate on the medical and optical markets. At GBP 3.3m before exceptional charges, underlying operating profit was 25.2% ahead of the 2007 period.

Turnover in the Technical Plastics division was unchanged at GBP 28.7m, but the shift in sales mix saw the operating margin increase from 5.1% to 6.8%. The UK medical business performed particularly well, benefiting from growth in diagnostic components and new medical device programmes.

In the Precision Products division, Sales were 40% ahead at GBP 14.2m, assisted by design and development revenues generated from contract wins in specialist automotive lighting. Product sales from these new contracts are forecast to drive revenue growth from 2010 onwards. On 31 July 2008, the division was strengthened by the acquisition of Jacottet Industrie (Chartres / France) for a net cash cost of GBP 1.6m. The small aerospace operation will complement Carclo’s existing UK aerospace business and is said to have traded well since the acquisition.

During the next few weeks, the company will deliver to a number of leading suppliers of RFID (radio frequency identification) antennas the first production samples from the roll-to-roll printed electronics line now commissioned at the Cambridge / UK facility of the Conductive Inkjet Technology division. Strong interest is also reported in CIT’s photolithographic inks for use in touchscreen interfaces.