Firm cleans up with bug blitz

Nov 14 2007 by Alistair Houghton, Liverpool Daily Post

THE steam cleaning and coatings firm leading the fight against hospital superbugs is on the acquisition trail after seeing revenues treble and profits rise 218%.

Proventec saw half-year revenues rise 299% to £5.82m while pre-tax profits rose from £123,000 to £391,000.

Proventec, which has its headquarters in Liverpool city centre, bought 80% of Cornish cleaning and hygiene products business Contico Manufacturing in June and says that acquisition has helped drive its growth in the six months to September 30.

Contico has helped Proventec market its OspreyDeepClean steam cleaning technology, which is increasingly widely used to clean hospitals and tackle potentially fatal superbugs such as MRSA and C-difficile.

Chairman Peter Teerlink said: “We are continuing with our strategy of realising non-core investments, while developing the group through organic growth and further acquisitions of businesses in complementary sectors and in our target markets.

“With this in mind, we have identified a number of potential target acquisitions and hope to be able to initiate and complete on some of these opportunities in the next 12 months.”

Proventec was founded in 2005 from a reverse takeover by Flintstone Technologies of OspreyDeepClean and fire retardant coatings business Magma.

Chief executive David Chestnutt, former finance director of Liverpool FC, said: “We are now prepared for what could be some exciting growth in 2008.

“Our broker Dawnay, Day is predicting the turnover will reach an annual figure of £14m. We’re hopeful the following year will dwarf that as well.”

Mr Chestnutt said studies at University College London Hospital studies had independently verified OspreyDeepCLean’s ability to eradicate infections such as MRSA.

alistairhoughton