Australia's largest foam producer, Joyce Corp. Ltd., will embark on an A$3.5 million (US$1.96 million) upgrade of production facilities, consolidating its Melbourne plant into its site in Sydney, Australia.
Frank Van Gogh, chief operating officer, said 65 percent of the company's business comes from Australia's east coast. ``Foaming activities will be centralized in Sydney to take advantage of longer production runs and better utilization of equipment and staff,'' he said.
Perth-based Joyce, which came out of receivership in February, has benefited from restructuring in the past two years and forecasts an improved 2003. The firm, which claims a 38 percent share of the Australian flexible PU foam market, reported profit of A$1.5 million (US$841,050) for fiscal 2002.
``Over the past two years, we have been through a rationalization of the foam business, cutting costs and focusing on improving customer satisfaction, and it is encouraging to see an improvement in the bottom line as a consequence,'' Van Gogh said.