Impro Celebrates its 2nd Listing Anniversary
Continues to Move Forward with Steady Growth
(Hong Kong, 28 June 2021) – A world-leading manufacturer of high-precision, high-complexity and mission-critical casting and machined components, Impro Precision Industries Limited (“Impro” or the “Group”) (Stock Code: 01286) today celebrated its second listing anniversary, having been listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on 28 June 2019.
Impro is the world’s seventh-largest independent investment casting manufacturer and the largest in China. It is also the world’s fourth-largest precision machining company in the end markets of automotive, aerospace and hydraulics[1]. Its products are used in diversified end markets. Through a vertically integrated operation model, Impro is able to provide its customers with comprehensive one-stop solutions, covering a complete set of value-added services along the value chain of precision components, and its products are sold in over 30 countries and regions globally, hence its diversified end markets and geographical coverage enable it to stand out from its industry peers. With strong and comprehensive capabilities, Impro has an excellent reputation in the precision component industry and has been widely recognized by customers and industry experts alike. For example, it recently received the 2020 Honeywell Aero ISC Supplier of the Year Award and GE Aviation’s 2020 Excellent Supplier award for its achievements in new product development, quality and delivery in 2020. In addition, the Group was included as a constituent of the MSCI Hong Kong Micro Cap Index on 28 May 2021, in recognition of its results performance and investment value by the capital market.
Mr. Lu Ruibo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Impro, said, “The COVID-19 pandemic that started to spread in 2020 has weakened the global economy and, like most other companies, the Group’s financial performance has been affected. Nevertheless, the Group has actively responded through a series of cost control measures, while paying close attention to the development trends of the precision component industry, with a particular focus on high-precision, high-complexity and performance-critical products, as well as providing one-stop solutions. The Group also continues to invest in its research and development capabilities to optimize production processes and improve operational efficiency, in order to ensure it is fully prepared for the recovery of market demand after the pandemic ends.”
Even more noteworthy is that, even in the face of adversity, the Group has continued its business expansion plan and the construction of the new production base in Mexico is also progressing as scheduled. The five production plants located in the Impro Mexico SLP Campus, namely the precision machining plant, the sand casting plant and the investment casting plant will be put into production in late June 2021 and the third and fourth quarter of 2021, respectively. The aerospace parts plant and surface treatment plant have also commenced construction and are scheduled to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2021. The SLP Campus will not only enhance the Group’s production capacity and competitiveness in North America, but will also effectively hedge the geopolitical risk in international trade and help the Group cultivate the North American market and boost business growth. In addition, the Group has taken the initiative to deploy its base in Turkey. This, plus the production plants in Mexico that will soon commence production and the strong capacity of the existing plant in China, will help the Group to rapidly expand its integrated production capacity, and will thus allow it to cope with the growth in orders in the post-pandemic era and realize the “Twin Source Production” strategy for customers to reduce potential supply chain and tariff risks caused by geopolitics.
In 2021, with the rollout of vaccination programs around the world, the economic and political environment of the Group’s core markets have shown signs of gradual improvement. As for the automotive end market, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), the uptrend of the passenger vehicles industry has sustained. In terms of overseas markets, the automotive markets in Europe and the US started to recover notably from the second half of last year. The European market has also maintained strong sentiment, benefiting from the stimulus of the new carbon emission regulations and subsidy policies. As for the industrial end market, the Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) was the first to resurge after the pandemic. The domestic manufacturing industry has continued to recover alongside the booming macroeconomic situation. Among which, demand in the heavy-duty truck market has recovered more quickly, while the working hours of construction equipment in North America and Europe has demonstrated a rising trend since the end of last year. With the construction equipment industry on an upward trend, the US market is expected to benefit from the infrastructure policy supported by the Biden government and thus forecast to enjoy strong growth in the next few years. In respect of the aerospace and medical end markets, it is believed that given the promotion of vaccinations and the resulting improvement of the global pandemic situation and relaxation of restrictions on international travel, the international air transport industry is expected to experience a recovery. In respect of the medical end market, consumer demand within the medical and health industry continues to increase, and thus will continue to promote the development of the medical device industry.
Mr. Lu Ruibo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Impro Precision concluded, “In the past year, the Group responded rapidly to the pandemic and actively overcame related challenges, so we managed to maintain stable operations. I believe that the second anniversary of our listing is just a starting point for the Group. Looking ahead, the rollout of vaccination programs is expected to boost the global economy. In addition, the Group’s Mexico SLP Campus will gradually commence production. We are poised to capture the opportunities arising from the post-pandemic economic recovery and will continue to strive to create long-term value for our shareholders.”
