Engineering group GKN has announced the creation of a new business unit called GKN Land Systems. This is basically a rebranding of its existing 'Off-Highway' division that sells components to tractor makers such as John Deere and Caterpillar. Off-Highway had a torrid recession and turned in a trading loss of £12m last year after sales slumped 43 per cent at constant currencies. But the late-cycle business is now slowly recovering, led by demand for mining and heavy construction equipment.
GKN has now packaged Off-Highway up with two smaller business units to create a new division with annualised sales of £700m. Management has set itself a target of more than doubling sales to £1.5bn within five years, having identified growth opportunities in defence, high-speed rail and even wind power.
When: 29 Jan 2010
Price: 123p
Performance to date: +5 per cent
