CD-R blips hit Plasmon hard

Late shipments in the CD-R market are to blame for Plasmon's losses.

Electronic equipment group Plasmon Plc, of which Azlan CEO Barriees. Morgans is chairman, is blaming high capacity and low prices in the CD-R disc market for the company's millions of pounds of losses.

The Cambridge-based vendor announced its results for the period ended 30 September, revealing a #8.23 million loss which included a #6 million charge for withdrawing from manufacturing CD-R discs two months ago.

Turnover was down by nine per cent to #14.1 million.

Morgans stated the optical storage company had been through a 'difficult period' which had resulted in loss and a change in direction.

Nigel Street, chief executive officer at Plasmon, cited late delivery of components for the manufacture of CD-R drives, as causing a further operating loss of #2 million.

'Part of the agreement with the supplier is that we sell CD-R drives, which are soured on an OEM basis, but the supplier was late,' said Street.

Street denied that he was passing the buck for the shortfall in revenue and refused to name which supplier was responsible, but he admitted that the unnamed company was based in Japan.

In July, Plasmon warned of losses for the six-month period before announcing a profit warning in September along with a glut of job losses and changes to the boardroom.