Leeds, 15 October 2009

Carclo plc

Carclo plc is a global technology led plastics group with two thirds of sales derived from the supply of fine tolerance, injection moulded plastic components used in medical, optical and electronics products.  One third of sales are derived from the supply of specialised products to the premium automotive and aerospace industries.  Carclo is a leader in the development of high power LED lighting for supercars.  Carclo’s strategy is also to develop new technologies to drive future growth and its investment in Conductive Inkjet Technology is at the heart of the newly emerging market for very low cost printed electronics.
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Cranswick plc

Cranswick was formed in the early 1970's by farmers in East Yorkshire to produce animal feed. The Company went onto the Stock Market in 1985 and since that time has evolved into a business which is highly focused on the food sector.  Activities include the supply of fresh pork, gourmet sausages, charcuterie, cooked meats, sandwiches and traditional dry cured bacon, from a number of production facilities across the UK.

In December 2008, the Company was admitted to the FTSE 250 index.

e-Therapeutics plc

e-Therapeutics plc (ETX) is a drug discovery and development company. The company’s scientists pioneered network-based drug discovery to swiftly and accurately analyse how molecules interact with cells in the body. This approach optimises the probability of identifying drug candidates with desirable efficacy and minimal side effects, and it has delivered a substantial pipeline of new therapies for ETX. Amongst ETX’s pipeline of compounds in development are an oral asthma treatment, which is entering Phase III clinical trials, a novel-mechanism antidepressant, also entering Phase III clinical trials, novel and potent antibiotics that kill MRSA and C.difficile, and show the lowest known rate of resistance of any antibiotic, and a novel cancer chemotherapy that kills malignant cells at safe doses in a very short time. ETX has out-licensed three of its drug programmes in India to resource the Phase III clinical trials while giving ETX full rights to exploit these drugs in the major markets
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Northgate plc

Northgate plc was previously known as Goode Durrant plc, a “mini conglomerate” with interests in motor retailing, construction, finance and portable accommodation rental.  During the 1990s, non-core businesses were divested to concentrate on the vehicle rental business remained, and the name was changed to Northgate plc in 1999.

Since 1999, the Group has grown significantly and Northgate plc is now the leading light commercial vehicle rental business in both the UK and Spain. Our core business is the rental of vehicles to other businesses on flexible length contracts, which gives customers the flexibility to manage their vehicle fleet without a long-term commitment.

The business in the UK and Ireland comprises 21 hire companies operating from 80 sites with a fleet of 62,900 vehicles. In addition, we sell former rental vehicles to both retail and trade customers. We also offer an increasing range of services and products to help customers manage their fleets effectively e.g. vehicle monitoring and parts procurement. For those customers who want to outsource part or all of their existing fleet whilst retaining ownership, our Fleet Technique business can assist them.

In Spain, we operate through two separate brands - Fualsa and Record. With 32 branches and a combined fleet of over 60,400 vehicles we are the market leaders in light commercial vehicle rental in Spain. Vehicle sales is again an important part of the business.

We serve customers operating in a wide range of industries of which construction and distribution are the two largest. Other major sectors include local authorities, public utilities and retailers.

The Group employs over 3,000 people.

The strong growth referred to above has contributed to the Group’s profitability, which saw earnings per share grow from 18.9p in 1999 to 86.7p in 2008, an annual compound growth rate of 18%.

Following nine years’ of consecutive growth in sales and earnings, the second half of 2008 saw a rapid deterioration in the Group’s markets, the speed and severity of which was unprecedented.  The impact of this downturn was to reduce underlying profit before tax for the year to 30/04/09 to £27.5m and necessitate a refinancing of the Group’s debt of c£1bn and raising of £108m of new equity.  A new strategic plan has been created to respond to both the new economic circumstances and the changed capital markets.  The plan focuses on efficient management of the fleet, costs reductions and cash generation, and aims to rebuild profitability and reduce borrowings, thereby positioning the Group for a recovery in demand when that occurs.
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Pressure Technologies plc

Pressure Technologies is the holding company for Chesterfield Special Cylinders (“CSC”) and Chesterfield BioGas. CSC designs, manufactures and offers retesting and refurbishment services for a range of speciality high pressure, seamless steel gas cylinders for global energy and defence markets. The business has been conducted under the “Chesterfield” brand which is a long established name in the cylinders and specialised pressure vessel market.

Chesterfield BioGas, formed in November 2008 following the signing of a co-operation agreement with Greenlane® Biogas Limited, the world leader in biogas upgrading from raw biogas to vehicle quality fuel, gives Pressure Technologies exclusive rights to market Greenlane® equipment in the UK and Eire. Chesterfield BioGas will provide turnkey solutions for the cleaning, storage and dispensing of biomethane, produced from waste water treatment and anaerobic digestion of organic waste.

Based at Meadowhall, Sheffield, the Group’s vision is to grow the business through a mixture of organic growth, diversification and the acquisition of complementary businesses to achieve a £40 million turnover business within five years of the June 2007 flotation on AIM.
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Spice plc

Spice provides Total Utility Support Services and is organised into two divisions; 

Supply Division provides white collar consultancy services, to utility supply businesses and to industrial and commercial customers.

Distribution Division provides white and blue collar outsourcing services mainly to distribution network operators but also to other commercial customers.

Spice is recognised as a leading provider of support services and works in partnership with a large number utility businesses including EdF Energy, Yorkshire Water, Scottish Power and United Utilities. Spice's businesses have a common theme of delivering and co-ordinating infrastructure services to customers that share the following characteristics:

·        exposure to non-discretionary and regulatory spend;

·        high barriers to entry;

·        increasing regulatory and infrastructure drivers;

·        increasing environmental drivers;

·        experienced and highly motivated management teams;

·        technical element to the services provided; and

·        strong platforms for cross selling.

The proportion of technical activities provided by the Spice has grown considerably in the last twelve months and in future years, we see an increasing proportion of revenues being derived from business process outsourcing.

Spice was founded in 1996 through a management buy out from Yorkshire Electricity. From a single contract worth £3 million per annum, Spice has grown principally organically and by acquisition to in excess of £400 million of sales per annum. Spice has adopted an ambitious strategy for growth and was admitted to the official list of the London Stock Exchange in July 2008, having first been admitted to AIM back in August 2004. Our underlying mission is to deliver value added services to our customers and thereby create sustainable returns for our shareholders.
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Straight plc