The Fife-based operation of international special effects and performance pigments manufacturer Silberline saw profits more than double last year.
The chemical company’s products are used to enhance the visual appeal of coatings, paints, inks and plastics, and the automotive and cosmetics industries are major clients.
The Pennsylvania-headquartered firm has had a major presence in Leven since 1974, where its specialises in the production of hundreds of silver pigments.
Accounts for the year to December 31, 2012, filed at Companies House this week show a fall in turnover from continuing operations at the Fife site from £26.29 million in 2011 to £25.02m.
The company underwent a restructuring during the year which saw the total workforce reduce from 155 in 2011 to 130, with 23 of those posts being cut from the production operation.
The accounts show the overall cost of sales fell by more than £2 million in the year from £21.66m to £19.33m, while a slight reduction in distribution costs and an £824,000 saving on administrative expenses all helped towards the significant increase achieved in the bottom line.
Total pre-tax profits for the year were £3.49m, £2.06m ahead of 2011’s £1.42m. Total shareholder dividends paid during the year amounted to £5.83m compared with a zero return a year earlier.
The business had been led by managing director Fraser Phillips, who resigned from the post in February last year according to the accounts statement.
“At the beginning of 2012 the company implemented a restructuring plan which included headcount reductions, manufacturing and other cost savings and improved working capital management,” the directors said in their report to the accounts.
“The commercial environment is expected to be uncertain in 2013, however the company remains confident that it will continue to achieve a profitable performance in the future.
“The company will continue to improve its operations through the investment in people, processes and working capital management, to ensure we meet the requirements of our customers.”
Silberline was established in 1945 by aluminium industry pioneer Ernest Scheller and remains family owned, with US-based Lisa Jane Scheller as chairman.
The firm employs several hundred staff in its global operations, and the Fife-based business is a major exporter with more than £23m of its total turnover being achieved in Europe and the rest of the world last year. Sales in the UK were £1.76m in the period.