A difficult construction landscape has led SIG’s revenues to drop in the last year. 

The roofing, cladding and insulation materials distributor released its latest trading update on Tuesday which showed a drop in like-for-like revenue growth of 2.3% in 2018, and 4.7% for H2 2018.

SIG cited “macro-economic uncertainty” as the reason for the downturn in commercial building work, housing inflation and secondary housing market transactions.

Like-for-like revenues in just the UK and Ireland fell by 8.8% in H2 2018, which SIG said was down the “weaker trading environment” which impacted on demand for its products.

However, SIG insists its current transformation process is on track, seeing it “focus on better pricing management” and withdrawing from unprofitable business, which has seen revenue drop in H2 2018, but increased gross margins “above [SIG’s] expectations”.

The company also said that falling headcount had reduced operating costs, and leadership changes along with restructuring the Group’s business model have laid the foundations for a strong 2019, with its strategy focusing on “customer service, customer value and operational efficiency”.

The Group will announce its full year results on 8 March, and it said it expect to report adjusted profit before tax of approximately £75 million, including the benefit of £2-3 million of property profits in the year.

Read the full report here.