Strong Defence & Aerospace Expansion Sees 12% Growth for Aero Sekur

Aero Sekur SpA  (www.aerosekur.com), one of the biggest European producers of fabrics and rubber technology for the aerospace and defence sectors, reported a 12% increase in turnover in 2015, driven by a major order for maintenance equipment for the F-35 combat aircraft.

The engineering firm is a global leader in fabric manufacturing for the worlds of defence, space and aviation and it is involved in some of the biggest international projects in these sectors, such as the F-35 and Eurofighter aircraft and the ExoMars mission which aims to search for life on the planet Mars.

Its overall sales totalled 36.6 million euros in 2015, up 12% on the year. Turnover reached 18.5 million euros in the Airborne division, 15 million euros in Defence and 3.1 million euros in the Space division.

“The 2015 figures show that investments in research and development were critical for the growth plan,” said Aero Sekur Chief Executive Marco Borghesi. “The sales increase is driven mainly by the defence sector, with the acquisition of an important order to produce maintenance equipment for the F-35. Government cuts to defence spending did not affect equipment for personal defence, such as protective suits, gas masks and ballistic jackets. The company also launched a strong internationalisation drive, increasing its client portfolio on the global scale,” he said.

The company is controlled by Aero Sekur LTD, an English holding company owned by the Tosca Penta fund (54%) and institutional and private investors
Its EBITDA in 2015 was 3.4 million euros, equal to about 9% of revenues. The slight decline compared to 2014 (-0.6%) was due to new production launches, which are expected to show a positive impact on margins from 2016.

The company has embarked on a research and development plan, investing more than 12 million euros in the last five years, which has allowed it to consolidate its presence in the international market. Aero Sekur is also involved in some of the biggest aerospace and defence projects financed by national and international institutions, in collaboration with the main players in the sectors.

Its strong results have attracted the support of the Agency for the Promotion of European Research, which has described Aero Sekur as a “virtuous example”, being the only small or medium sized aerospace company to have won three international contests in the first year of Horizon 2020, the European Commission programme which finances projects for research and innovation up to 2020.