Hurt by the impact on earnings of the strong Canadian dollar, Dorval, Quebec-based maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) firm ExelTech posted a 2008 fiscal year net loss of C$1.8 million ($1.8 million) compared to the C$1.3 million profit it recorded in the year earlier period.
For the 12 months ended 31 March, revenue improved 9% year-over-year to C$54.4 million. However, the cost of sales and operating expenses also rose. ExelTech eked out a slight C$0.5 million operating profit versus a C$4.8 million operating profit for the 2007 fiscal year.
“This has been a challenging year for us. Our results reflect the impact of the rapid increase in the strength of the Canadian dollar, which has a big impact on our margins because we sell our services in US dollars, but incur most of our costs here in Canada,” says ExelTech chairman and CEO Derek Nice.
The company is responding to the challenges by accelerating its process enhancement and productivity initiatives. “We expect to see these initiatives flow through to the bottom line. I am confident that we will successfully execute on our business plan with a return to profitability and continued growth and geographic expansion,” says Nice.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Source: Flight International
