| A West Midlands company has been named Business of the Year by the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Hill & Smith Holdings PLC, which can trace its history back for over a century and a half, was recognised by the Chamber for its achievements in building its business over the last year.
The group’s key products include road safety barriers, other vehicle restraint systems, street lighting columns, storm water management systems, fencing, palisades and electronic traffic management systems and signage.
A panel of judges appointed by the Chamber made the award in recognition of the group’s financial performance, product innovation and investment in new technology.
These advances have helped the business to transform itself in recent times to a highly successful transport infrastructure, building and construction products group, which now has interests in Europe and the USA.
Birmingham Chamber’s Business of the Year award is open to businesses of all sizes across the region.
To win the award, the Chamber says that businesses have to display qualities such as vision, determination and business acumen. They also have to prove they can meet strict criteria such as a strong financial performance.
Hill & Smith’s Chief Executive David Grove said: “The award is a tribute to the success of our management teams and employees around the group.
“Our focus on our core businesses, where we benefit from strongly growing markets and where we are among the market leaders, continues to pay off.
“We have continued with our programme of capital spending in core areas and in recent months, we have made a couple of niche acquisitions, in electronic transport signs and traffic counters and accessories.
“This innovation and product development has helped us to deliver improved market share and strong profit growth”.
Hill & Smith’s achievement in winning the Business of the Year award was the second leg of a double for the West Midlands-based group, as Mr Grove was one of four business leaders short listed for the ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ category at the PLC Awards run by the Financial Times.
Hill & Smith recently (8 March 2006) released excellent annual results which show 56.5% growth in pre-tax profits to £15.7m and a 24 per cent increase in the final dividend. Excluding the effect of reorganisation and property items, underlying profit before taxation rose by one third.
Hill & Smith’s share price has risen steadily over the last five years, increasing by 233 per cent.
Brokers Arden Partners are forecasting a further increase in pre tax profits from £15.7m in 2005 to £17.5m in the year ended 31 December 2006.
Further information
Hill & Smith Holdings PLC
David Grove 0121 704 7430 - 07973 325667
Freshwater UK PLC
Edward Carter 0121 633 7775 - 07770 378097
Anna McNeil 0121 633 7775
|
