Hampson Industries' appearance in the Top 100 (at number 98) caps a busy summer for the UK-based tooling manufacturer, which has been expanding its presence in the burgeoning composites sector. In June it completed the acquisitions of Odyssey Industries and its corporate sister Global Tooling Systems (GTS) - two Michigan-based suppliers of large, close-tolerance tooling systems. Soon afterwards Odyssey revealed that it had won a $17 million contract to supply around 4,000 tools for structural assembly and subassembly work on the Boeing 747-8.
Odyssey and GTS had agreed to sell to Hampson on 2 May. In the six weeks that followed, their combined orderbook rose from $75 million to $107 million. Among the programmes they serve are the Boeing 787 and the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
The acquisitions were part of what Hampson Industries' chief executive Kim Ward has termed a "strategic push into high-margin, high-growth aerospace composite component and tooling systems manufacture". This push has also seen Hampson acquire USA firms Texstars, Coast Composites and Composites Horizons. In June, Texstars landed a five-year, $39 million contract for the exclusive global supply of Lockheed F-16 canopies.
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Hampson Industries draws 85% of its revenue from aerospace business, split between two units: Components & Structures, and Composites & Transparencies. The former accounts for 56% of total revenues and the latter for 29%. Composites & Transparencies is growing at a faster rate. In the year to 31 March, its revenues grew 26% and its profit by 50%, while Components & Structures achieved revenue and profit gains of 11% and 15% respectively.
At group level, the past three years have seen revenue double and trading profit increase sevenfold. Continuing rapid growth is expected. "Even without the underlying growth in the aero structures market now projected, demand for composite structures would grow at a double-digit rate over the next 10 years, driven by the need for lighter, stronger airframes resulting in greater fuel efficiency," says Ward. That suggests a rosy outlook for a company billing itself "the largest independent manufacturer of tooling systems for composite aero structures".
Source: Flight International
