The Brambles profits increase, announced yesterday, was down to a strong performance by its CHEP pallet and container business while Cleanaway, which operates in the UK and overseas including Germany and Australia, faced a harder time overall in terms of profit to sales.
Cleanaway's sales were 5% higher, with comparable operating profit 8% lower at 82 million. However, operating profit did increase in the second half of the year due to much better results in the UK.
The UK performance was especially strong in the municipal and landfill sectors with sales of 495 million, an increase of 6%. Comparable operating profit in the UK also improved over the prior year.
Brambles reported that Cleanaway's municipal business “continued to gain from new contracts, improved rates and additional more profitable short term contracts. New wins included waste collection and street cleaning for the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead. The municipal order book at the end of June stood at 831 million.”
Route density
The company statement continued: “The C&I; business showed consistent improvements in margin in the second half, as management actions took hold. Further improvements in route density and customer service levels are expected and Cleanaway will continue to focus on revenue retention at acceptable margins to improve profitability.
“Recycling and disposal services saw improvements in landfill price and a better mix of landfilled waste. The Greenwich materials recycling facility (MRF), which was commissioned in December 2004, is already at break-even.”
Subscribe for free