Midlands-based Hampson Industries, which engineers tools for the aviation industry, has seen a 149 per cent increase in pre-tax profits in the last six months.
The firm, which started in West Bromwich in the 1940s, manufactures tools for use within the aeronautical sector. It specialises in shins, which are used to fasten together aircraft components.
Although Hampson’s financial director Howard Kimberly admits that these are “a fairly low-value part”, the company’s expertise within such a niche market has allowed them to become very profitable.
Kimberly explains the secret of their recent success:
“The important feature of our business is that one of our key sectors is not correlated to commercial build rates.
“We provide tooling for the construction of aircraft, and are the market leader by a factor of four. If Airbus or Boeing are building one aircraft or 1,000 aircraft, they still need the tools.”
The established firm is set to thrive as the aviation sector aims to become more energy efficient. “Airlines are facing an ever-increasing demand for aircraft to be more fuel efficient – from the environmental lobby, and from the industry. That means that the aircraft must be lighter. And for planes to be lighter they must be designed in a different way.”
The market-leading company also attributes its increasing profits to its acquisitions: Hampson has bought several US tooling companies, including Global Trading Systems, which is based in Michigan.
