Otter hit by car crash
THE sharp fall in global car sales had a big impact on revenue at a Buxton engineering firm.
Otter Controls, which makes switches for the automotive industry, saw orders fall by 36% in the last three months of 2008 as the recession began to bite.
The slump, combined with falling sales at a division that makes water heating elements, has forced the 60-year-old business to make redundancies and close one of its facilities.
The details are contained within Otter’s latest filed accounts. The group did not say how many of its 1,000 staff were made redundant but it has cut around 70 jobs since December. Chief executive David Smith declined to comment.
In the group’s accounts for the year to December 31, 2008, the directors said Otter bore the brunt of motor manufacturers’ decisions to de-stock and reduce production volumes.
Its Ferro Group business, which specialises in water heating elements, faced tough competition and saw sales fall by 32%.
The group made a pre-tax loss of £779,216 – down from profits of £2.1m last time. Sales rose 16% to £43m.
But Otter, which also makes switches for domestic appliances such as kettles and washing machines, said orders for automotive switches began to improve in the second half of 2009.
The group has operations in Wales, continental Europe and China. Around 63% of turnover comes from outside the EU.
