TYRONE-based airport ground support equipment (GSE) manufacturer Mallaghan returned to profit in 2021 as the aviation industry began to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.
In annual accounts filed at Companies House for the year to December 31, the company revealed profit before tax of £983,278 following a loss of £1,133,333 in the previous year.
Turnover reduced to £32,929,354 from £41,798,210 in 2020, but the business, which exports to more than 100 countries, said it expects that figure to improve significantly in the next financial year.
The company was founded by Terry Mallaghan in the 1960s as a civil engineering contractor and branched into GSE products in 1990.
Ronan Mallaghan, managing director at Mallaghan, said: "Air travel across the globe remained subdued in 2021 as the Covid-19 pandemic continued to impact the entire industry.
"We took the opportunity to introduce new efficiencies, invest in R&D and new products and placed a strategic focus on exploring new geographical markets, particularly in the United States and China.
"That approach is now paying dividends with order books full as demand for Mallaghan products increases to fuel the uplift in air travel.
"As a result, we are anticipating sales to return to pre-pandemic levels in the next financial year and are actively recruiting across the group as we ramp up production levels to meet the increased workloads."
Headquartered in Dungannon with additional operations in Atlanta, Georgia, Mallaghan designs and manufacturers GSE including airport buses, fire rescue stairs, catering trucks, de-icers, passenger stairs and maintenance platform lifts.
Its clients include Aer Lingus, British Airways, China Eastern Airlines, Delta, easyJet, Emirates, Etihad, Menzies Aviation, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Ryanair, SAS and Swissport.
