Fenner sells off lightweight conveyor belt operation
CONVEYOR belt manufacturer Fenner has sold its US-based lightweight conveyor belt operation in a $7.8m (£3.9m) deal.
The sale of the Charlotte, North Carolina operations to Forbo Siegling – a subsidiary of Swiss firm Forbo Holding – sees Hull-based Fenner further concentrate on its heavyweight conveyor belting business primarily for mining applications, and in particular coal mining.
It follows Fenner’s recent announcement of its proposed acquisition of the Conveyor Services Corporation Group.
Mark Abrahams, Fenner’s chief executive said that the acquisition reflected the firm’s “continued investment” in its North American heavyweight conveyor belting business.
Fenner is a world leader in the field of reinforced polymer engineering. Its products include medium-weight and heavyweight conveyor belting for the mining and power generation markets, precision motion control products for the office automation and mechanical equipment markets, sealing products for the mining, hydraulics and energy industries, and technical textile structures for medical and industrial applications.
The group has recently bought a number of new companies in America.
In April it acquired King Energy in New Mexico for $5.65m (£2.85m) through its Fenner Dunlop Americas subsidiary.
Fenner also bought Winfield, based in Buffalo, New York, which manufactures polyurethane and silicone-moulded products used in missiles and film processing and technical fabrics business Prodesco in a deal worth up to £32m.
Last November the group paid £1.3m for the New York privately-owned engineering business B-loc which produces and sells specialist power transmission and motion control components and in December it bought an Australian company.
Fenner has warned that it is at risk from volatility in the worldwide economy – particularly in America – and that the cost of raw materials in its manufacturing processes could impact the group’s overall performance.
However, the group is confident that its strong order book and recent acquisitions will see it deliver a strong performance for 2008.
