The Comac Group Plc quietly announced its results for the six months ending June 30, with the new management team promising greater growth in the future. The group, which deals in contract programmers, reported an increase in net profit of 49.7% to ?41,855 on turnover up 56.2% at ?5.3m. The company only changed management nine weeks ago following the purchase of 19.5% stake in the firm. Philip Swinstead, founder of the old Systems Designers Plc, has completed his coup at Comac, initiated when he bought a 19.5% stake in June, as soon as his non-compete clause with SD-Scicon’s new owner Electronic Data Systems Corp expires (CI No 2,191). Swinstead, eager to get back to the battle, is now chief executive of Comac, brought in his own management team, heralding the departure of the previous chairman and two executive directors. The departure of the former management drew a ?120,063 exceptional charge for termination costs. Although profits were up on last year, the group’s overseas trading suffered, as did UK margins. The company, which currently trades on the Unlisted Securities Market but will eventually be fully listed according to Swinstead, will probably sell Systems Evolutif Ltd, its three-man systems integration outfit in London. Even so the company’s growth plan, which is based on acquisition, will intially call for it to buy a systems integration company – a move which will coincide with its full Stock Exchange listing. Comac’s systems integration business will benefit from its outsourcing approach, according to Swinstead. Systems companies have acres of office space filled with systems integration staff, he said. The trend is going to be in outsourcing: people are starting to use contractors on a freelance basis, and companies with their own staff will find themselves at a disadvantage.
