REG - Pennant Int. Group - Business Update & Board Change

Pennant InternationalAnnouncement

14/05/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 2550O  Pennant International Group PLC  14 May 2024

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
                                             14
May 2024

 

PENNANT INTERNATIONAL GROUP PLC

("Pennant", the "Company", or the "Group")

 

Business Update & Board Change

 

 

Pennant International Group plc (AIM:PEN), the systems support and training
solutions company, provides the following update.

 

Strategic Software Investment

 

The Group's programme of investment in its proprietary software suite has
continued during the first half of the year, following a circa £1.3 million
investment in 2023, with version 3 of GenS, the equipment configuration
management solution, being released as planned on 30 April 2024.

 

The investment programme now moves into the next phase, which will see all
three of Pennant's core applications - GenS, Analyzer and R4i - being
integrated into one, holistic solution which will provide its customers in
defence and other sectors with a powerful, market-leading toolset to manage,
model and utilise vast amounts of complex equipment data. The planned
investment for 2024 is expected to be similar in quantum to 2023. This
'integrated suite' is targeted for launch by year-end, and marketing and early
engagement with key customers has been ongoing since 2022.

 

Further details of GenS and the integrated suite can be found here: The Future
Generation Software is here. - Pennant International Group plc
(pennantplc.com)
(https://www.pennantplc.com/the-future-generation-software-is-here/) .

 

Trading & Order Intake

 

Trading in the year to date has been in line with the Board's expectations
although the Group has incurred exceptional, non-recurring costs of circa
£0.3 million in relation to aborted corporate activity.

 

Management's assessment is that the Group's key markets are starting to see a
significant increase in activity, and in response to customer tenders and
requests for proposals, the Group has quoted on over £32 million of new
business opportunities during the last six months (spanning the entire
spectrum of the Group's product and services offering).

 

That said, the expected level of order conversion has not occurred in the year
to date, which is primarily attributable to extended customer procurement
timeframes, not the loss of opportunities. While challenging in the short
term, it is not unusual for the acquisition of training and support solutions
to be finalised after the commencement of the main vehicle/platform purchase.

 

The Group is continuing to actively progress several material sales prospects
with the expectation that these are now likely to crystallise into new orders
in the second half of the year. The timing and quantum of these potential
awards remains subject to contract and, in certain cases, the completion of
processes at defence department and prime contractor level. In the meantime,
the Group is actively managing its allocation of resources, for example since
the start of the year, giving notice to exit two premises which are not
expected to be needed to deliver the pipeline opportunities.

 

Board Change

 

Further to his previously-announced intention to retire as Chair at this
year's Annual General Meeting, Philip Cotton has decided to step down now,
allowing Chair Designate, Ian Dighé to become Chair with immediate effect.
Philip Cotton will retire as a director and leave the Board at the AGM.

 

Ian Dighé, Chair, commented: "The Board would like to thank Phil Cotton for
his five years of service and we wish him all the best for the future. The
process to find a new independent non-executive director with skills that
complement the existing Board is commencing."

 

 

Enquiries:

 

 Pennant International Group plc                  www.pennantplc.com
 Philip Walker, CEO                               +44 (0) 1452 714 914

 David Clements, Commercial & Risk Director

 Michael Brinson, CFO

 WH Ireland Limited (Nomad and Broker)             www.whirelandplc.com/capital-markets
 Mike Coe / Sarah Mather (Corporate Finance)      +44 (0) 20 7220 1666
 Fraser Marshall / George Krokos (Sales)

 Walbrook PR (Financial PR)                       pennant@walbrookpr.com
 Tom Cooper                                       +44 (0)20 7933 8780

 Joe Walker                                       Mob: +44 (0)7971 221 972

 

Notes to Editors:

 

Pennant International Group plc (AIM:PEN) is a leading global provider of
systems support and training solutions to defence departments and major OEMs
worldwide to maximise operational and maintenance efficiency.

 

The Group addresses the market through three key business lines:

 

·      Systems support: software tools designed to help clients: manage
and use complex data; ensure equipment availability at optimal cost; and
comply with industry standards.

 

·      Training solutions: provide hardware, software and virtual
solutions, critical skills training for maintainers and operators of aircraft,
ships and land systems.

 

·      Technical services: support all Pennant's software and training
solutions including consultancy, support and maintenance, training and bespoke
development

 

The Group is headquartered in Cheltenham, UK, and operates worldwide
employing over 140 staff in offices in the UK, North America and Indo Pacific
regions serving markets with high barriers to entry in regulated industries.

 

Pennant was established over 65 years ago and was admitted to AIM in March
1998.

 

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