SUPERGLASS, the Scottish insulation manufacturer, has brought forward plans double its output capacity after its Russian owner sanctioned investment totalling nearly £40 million in its Stirling site.
In what is likely to be one of the biggest investments in Scottish manufacturing and engineering this year, Russian construction materials giant TechnoNICOL has backed Superglass to hike its production capacity for glass wool to 60,000 tonnes. At least 20 high-value jobs are expected to be created at the Stirling hub on the back of the investment, lifting the total headcount at the company to around 180.
The commitment follows the £8.7 million acquisition of Superglass by Cyprus-registered TechnoNICOL in July last year.
READ MORE: Russian industrialist makes good on pledge to Stirling site
TechnoNICOL, which has 52 manufacturing facilities across Russia and Europe, spent an initial £4.5m to replace the furnace at the plant. It is now following that up with more than £30m of investment to upgrade a host of other facilities, including cooling, cutting and milling equipment and curing ovens. Scottish Enterprise has committed £477,000 of the latest tranche to help secure the jobs boost.
In total TechnoNICOL, which is owned by one-time cross-country skier Sergey Kolesnikov, has pledged to invest close to £40m in the Stirling site since the deal went through.
It caps a remarkable turnaround in fortunes at the company which endured severe financial difficulty between 2010 and 2015.
Superglass floated with a value of £120m in 2007. However it hit problems when the home insulation market it was heavily exposed to went into sharp decline as government schemes to boost energy efficiency unravelled.
The collapse in its core revenue stream forced the company to refinance three times, but it began to recover when chief executive Ken Munro embarked on a strategy to move into markets where it could command a higher price for its products. The turnaround, which has seen the company move into the housebuilding sector, was under way when TechnoNICOL swooped, with the company having delivered a £10m improvement to the profitability of the Superglass operation in the last three years.
READ MORE: Russian industrialist makes good on pledge to Stirling site
The most recent accounts for Superglass show that it made a £3.7m loss before tax over the 16 months to December 31 last year, having lost £4.9m the year before.
Mr Munro, who since the acquisition has been given an enhanced role covering Western Europe and North America at TechnoNICOL, said the “spectacular progress” made by Superglass in the last year had accelerated the owner’s plans to invest in the company.
He said the close rapport which has been established between the two companies’ engineers and R&D teams has been “exceptional”, stating: “That’s really what has driven the decision to make such a substantial investment in Stirling, which is far and away the largest investment [made by TechnoNICOL] outside of the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States).”
He added: “It’s a very significant investment in terms of engineering and manufacturing in Scotland. It’s gives us essentially gives us a new plant on the site.
“It gives great scope for development for staff on site, and the jobs we are immediately creating are high-value, skilled jobs, which I think is what the Scottish economy needs.”
As well as boosting capacity, Mr Munro said he hopes the investment will allow the company to build on the success of its the blown wool product for new-build homes, which has been key to its turnaround strategy.
Mr Munro noted housebuilding remains key to the growth strategy at Superglass, declaring that he sees no slowdown in activity in the UK for the foreseeable future.
READ MORE: Russian industrialist makes good on pledge to Stirling site
Outside the UK, Mr Munro said Superglass has been able to strengthen its international footprint under the auspices of TechnoNICOL. He said the company has consolidated its presence in Scandinavia, France, and the UK.
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