IMI chief honoured as first half profits slide

THE head of a major Birmingham-based engineering firm has been recognised for his contribution to industry with a top university honour.

Mark Selway, chief executive of IMI, is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate from Birmingham City University. The award recognises his work within the field of engineering.

Australia-born Mr Selway was presented with the accolade during a ceremony held at Birmingham’s Symphony Hall alongside graduates from the university’s Faculty of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment.

He said: “It is such a special privilege to receive this award from a business leader that I hold in very high regards in a city IMI is proud to call home. Birmingham is blessed with terrific talent, a can-do attitude that is helping the city move forward, and fantastic graduates entering its workforce from all disciplines.”

Ironically, the award comes just as IMI has announced a fall in first half revenue and profits.

Figures for the six months to June 30, 2016, show revenue declined to £759m (H1 2015: £765m) with pre-tax profit at £86m (H1 2015: £107m).

Commenting, Mr Selway said that despite ongoing economic turbulence, the results were in line with expectations.

“We continued to make good progress against our strategic plan. In particular, the various initiatives to drive growth including improving operational efficiency, enhancing processes and launching new products are making a difference and our market competitiveness is improving,” he said.
 
The group is hoping that the second half of the year will be more favourable to the business.

“With a broad international manufacturing footprint and less than 6% of sales in the UK, the transactional impact of Brexit is expected to be modest, with the greatest business sensitivities likely to stem from any general shift in business confidence and investment,” he said.

“Our focus remains resolutely on delivering great products and unparalleled support to our customers, notwithstanding any wider uncertainties and distractions.”
 
Based on current market conditions, and on an organic constant currency basis, the group expects 2016 results to be in line with current market expectations.

Mr Selway became chief executive at IMI in 2014 after a brief spell back in Australia and is responsible for 12,000 employees.