Datong spies profit as record orders come in
INTELLIGENCE and tracking equipment maker Datong has said it expects to be in profit by the year end after unveiling record orders up 234% for the first half.
The Leeds-based group, which sells its high performance equipment to law enforcement authorities, security organisations and the military to track criminal and terrorist suspects, saw orders rise to £4.91m in the six months to September 30 from £1.47m for the same period in 2008.
Chief executive Dean Blood said that since the end of its half year the group has added more than £3m of orders during what is its strongest trading period with 70% of its turnover produced during the second half of the year.
The group saw revenue increase 86% to £2.81m in the six months to September 30 while operating losses for the period were £1.32m compared to £1.67m last time.
Mr Blood said the group had responded to a slowing of orders from Europe and the US by developing sales in new territories such as South East Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
Finance director Stephen Ayres said it has a confirmed order book up to £2.32m from £280,000 last year and had net cash of £1.7m at the half year stage.
He said that the change of administration in the US with Barack Obama’s arrival as US President last year had continued to see budget delays for US government departments which Datong deals with.
Mr Blood said: “I am delighted with Datong’s performance for the period and am further encouraged by the orders we have won since the period end as it reinforces our growth and diversification strategy. Whilst the market in the Americas has continued to perform below our expectations largely due to customer budget constraints, we maintain a positive outlook for the longer term opportunities within the region.
“On the back of continuing demand for our third party products and a good order book, we are looking forward to a strong performance in the second half year.”
Chairman Paul Lever added: “The board is confident in the implementation of its growth strategy and has been encouraged by recent successes in developing new markets. We expect to see continued success from these regions in the second half year together with a stronger performance from the UK and European markets.
“We do not, however, anticipate any significant upturn in the Americas market in this financial year but we remain confident of the ongoing requirement for tracking and surveillance technology and expect to see increased sales again in the longer term.”
