Building materials group SIG reports pre-tax loss of €61.8m

BRITISH building materials group SIG has reported a pre-tax loss of £55.3 million (€61.8m) for 2009, with its Irish operations again playing a negative role in overall performance.

The Sheffield-headquartered insulation product specialist, which employs around 300 people in Ireland, had made a pre-tax profit of £33.1m in 2008; but attributed a slowdown in construction activity and harsh winter weather as reasons for the negative turnaround in financial performance.

On mainland Europe, SIG operates in Germany, France and the Benelux countries; and it has an Eastern European presence.