LONDON — Invensys plc of London has sold its Australian Automotive Engineered Polymer Systems Division to Austrim Nylex Ltd. for 42 million (US$67 million). "The automotive components industry is consolidating and under Austrim's ownership, EPS will be in a stronger position to pursue opportunities for further growth," Invensys Chief Executive officer Allen Yurko said in a news release.
The company sees its greatest opportunity for continued growth in its automation and controls business, he added.
EPS makes a broad range of plastic parts for auto and industrial applications. With factories in Victoria and South Australia, it employs more than 1,700. For the 12 months ended Sept. 30, EPS had sales of 110 million (US$177 million), and pretax profit of 10 million (US$16 million).
Austrim makes products for the automotive, aerospace, biomedical and power generation industries.
Invensys is a global electronics and engineering firm created by the 1999 merger of BTR plc and Siebe plc.