The Group's key strengths, which have contributed to its success to date, are:

• Foseco being a global leader in foundry consumables, as well as being a leader in the European and North American steel making consumables market
• The Group's global reach, with highly trained sales and technical staff in almost every significant industrial economy in the world, which provides the Group with a key competitive advantage


• Its well recognised brand which, built on over 70 years of history and patent protected technologies, is amongst the leading brands in the markets it serves


• The Group's product dynamics. In both Foseco Foundry and Foseco Steel, the Group works closely with its customers to optimise the application in which the Group's products are used. The combination of effective products and high levels of technical service is key to the Group's brand strength


• The Group's commitment to product development which has enabled the Group to be a leading innovator and to maintain its competitive advantage


• Its proven track record in establishing, nurturing and growing successful businesses in developing economies. This experience and expertise will support the effective exploitation of substantial new opportunities associated with key growth markets, notably China and former Soviet-Bloc countries


• The diverse customer bases of both divisions of the Group. Foseco Foundry supplies over 5,000 customers serving a broad range of end-user sectors including automotive, railway and heavy transport, construction and heavy machinery and general engineering, across the world. Foseco Steel has a relatively smaller customer base, reflecting the more concentrated structure of the steel industry. However, key technical decisions are typically made at the individual steel plant level and no single plant represents more than four per cent. of Foseco Steel's sales.


• The Group's track record of generating strong and stable cash flow through the economic cycle, which is a result of the Group's robust business model, geographic diversity, price stability and ability to manage capex requirements through the cycle


• The Group's strong, well regarded management team, which has extensive experience in the industry