How Polypipe has been operating 70 per cent below normal demand

Plastic pipe systems manufacturer Polypipe said it has been operating at approximately 70 per cent below normal demand following the coronavirus outbreak.
A worker at Polypipe in South Yorkshire.A worker at Polypipe in South Yorkshire.
A worker at Polypipe in South Yorkshire.

The Doncaster-based firm said that this was supplied mainly from existing stock and was driven by urgent NHS and care-related activity as well as some ongoing infrastructure and commercial work, and essential repair, maintenance, and improvement.

Polypipe has implemented a range of measures to reduce costs and conserve cash following the outbreak. It has furloughed around 60 per cent of its workforce.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It has also curtailed its capital expenditure, which was expected to be around £25m for the 2020 financial year.

On March 25, the business cancelled a final dividend payment for the 2019 financial year, saving itself £16m, and has reduced base salary and fees for both executive directors and non-executive directors by 20 per cent.

Polypipe also announced its intention to conduct a non-pre-emptive placing of new ordinary shares to raise total gross proceeds of around £120m. Management will be participating in the placing.

This placing should enable it to come out on the front foot and ensure it can continue to invest in the business.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The firm says it has analysed a range of scenarios primarily based on assumptions regarding the period of lockdown and the level of activity subsequently in both the group's residential and commercial and infrastructure divisions.

The anaylsis focused on two potential scenarios, both showing that levels would be down on the previous year due to the Covid-19 disruption.

Editor’s note: first and foremost - and rarely have I written down these words with more sincerity - I hope this finds you well.

Almost certainly you are here because you value the quality and the integrity of the journalism produced by The Yorkshire Post’s journalists - almost all of which live alongside you in Yorkshire, spending the wages they earn with Yorkshire businesses - who last year took this title to the industry watchdog’s Most Trusted Newspaper in Britain accolade.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

And that is why I must make an urgent request of you: as advertising revenue declines, your support becomes evermore crucial to the maintenance of the journalistic standards expected of The Yorkshire Post. If you can, safely, please buy a paper or take up a subscription. We want to continue to make you proud of Yorkshire’s National Newspaper but we are going to need your help.

Postal subscription copies can be ordered by calling 0330 4030066 or by emailing [email protected]. Vouchers, to be exchanged at retail sales outlets - our newsagents need you, too - can be subscribed to by contacting subscriptions on 0330 1235950 or by visiting www.localsubsplus.co.uk where you should select The Yorkshire Post from the list of titles available.

If you want to help right now, download our tablet app from the App / Play Stores. Every contribution you make helps to provide this county with the best regional journalism in the country.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.