Goodwin PLC Directorate Change (7252X)

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RNS Number : 7252X

Goodwin PLC

01 May 2019

1(st) May 2019

Goodwin PLC

Directorate Change

As of 6.00 p.m. on 30(th) April 2019 Richard S Goodwin (aged 65 this year) stepped down from his role as Managing Director of Goodwin PLC having completed 27 years in this role. During this time annual pre-tax profits have grown from GBP402,000 (1992) to GBP13.3 million (2018), an annual compound growth of 14% per year equating to a 33 fold increase in profitability over the period. The Group annual turnover has gone from GBP3.6 million to GBP124.8 million.

During this 27 year period the Company has gone from having seven trading subsidiaries (three Mechanical Engineering companies and four Refractory Engineering companies) to having 24 trading subsidiaries (15 Mechanical Engineering companies and nine Refractory Engineering companies) with the current split of profitability being approximately 50 / 50 between the two divisions. Currently 50 % of profits are made outside the UK by the 16 overseas subsidiaries that the Company now has.

Due to the diversity of the business (both in products and global locations), which is in part an advantage as we are able to benefit from carrying out business in countries around the world that have had and will have higher GDP growth than there is in Europe, the Board has decided to split the role of Group Managing Director into "Managing Director of the Mechanical Engineering Division" and "Managing Director of the Refractory Engineering Division" such that appropriate focus and energy can be applied to continue growing these two important but quite different divisions.

Accordingly, as from the 1(st) May 2019, Matthew S Goodwin is appointed Managing Director of the Goodwin PLC Mechanical Engineering Division and Simon R Goodwin is appointed Managing Director of the Goodwin PLC Refractory Engineering Division. Matthew has worked in the Company for the past sixteen years and has been a Director of Goodwin International Ltd (our largest mechanical engineering company) for the past 15 years and has been a Director of Goodwin PLC for the past 13 years. Matthew is also Managing Director of Goodwin International Ltd.

Simon R Goodwin has worked for the company for the past fourteen years. He has worked for our largest Refractory Engineering company, Goodwin Refractory Services Ltd, for the past thirteen years and has been a Director of Goodwin PLC for the past nine years. Simon has been managing our UK and overseas refractory companies for the last few years.

As of 6.00 p.m. on 30(th) April 2019, John W Goodwin (aged 68 this year) stepped down from his role as Chairman of Goodwin PLC having completed 27 years in this role. John with his brother Richard trained the 6(th) Generation of Goodwin family engineers and accountant, such that they would be able to carry on the task of growing Goodwin PLC and avoiding high risks and large debt.

John's son, Timothy Goodwin, is as of the 1(st) May 2019 appointed as Chairman of Goodwin PLC. Whilst he is the youngest of the four sons of the 6(th) generation, Timothy attended university as all four sons did achieving honours degrees and he has subsequently obtained his ACA accountancy qualification. Timothy joined Goodwin eight years ago and has been a Director of Goodwin PLC for the past four years. During his time with the Company he has spent time working across the Group and is a Director of several Goodwin companies, both in the UK and overseas. This has enabled him to gain knowledge of both the Mechanical and Refractory Engineering Divisions and provided him with a broad perspective of the Group as a whole.

John and Richard Goodwin will no longer be Directors of Goodwin PLC as they are keen for the Board of Goodwin PLC including the 6(th) Generation of Goodwin family members, to feel and take responsibility for continuing to take the company forward in a responsible manner.

John and Richard will continue to sit on the Audit Committee of Goodwin PLC as well as having numerous roles in subsidiaries of Goodwin PLC both in the UK and overseas subsidiaries, but they will no longer be responsible for providing the drive and direction of the Goodwin Group as it is considered important by the Board that it be given its head and allowed to make its own judgements. It is considered that the some 90 years of knowledge of world markets, products and lifecycles that John and Richard have will aid the Audit Committee to comment better on business risks, as is more recently being stated to be important, rather than committee members being totally independent with little or no day to day involvement in the business and with no equity in the Company.

All of the above appointments and the composition of the Audit Committee will be subject to re-affirmation by the shareholders at the AGM in October 2019 where each matter will be voted on separately.

John, Richard and the remainder of the Board, that includes John Connolly, Steven Birks, Bernard Goodwin and Jennifer Kelly as a Non-Executive Director, are very confident that these new appointments will result in robust, stable and strong leadership, which will successfully take the Company forward over the coming decades.

The Company also reports that it increased its equity holding in three overseas investment casting powder manufacturing subsidiaries (Jewelry Plaster, Thailand, Ultratec China and SRS Qingdao, China) to 75% after buying out the 25 % equity of one of our partners, Mr Prasert Hongsrichinda. We take the opportunity of thanking Prasert for his hard and collaborative work over the past eleven years that has helped these companies be successful.

For further information, please contact

Mrs Jenny Martin

Company Secretary

Goodwin PLC

[e-mail]

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May 01, 2019 05:03 ET (09:03 GMT)