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Cape plc
IndustryEnergy services
Founded1893
HeadquartersWest Drayton, Middlesex
Key people
Timothy Eggar (Chairman)
Joe Oatley (CEO)
ProductsAccess, Insulation, Coatings, Passive Fire Protection, Refractory Linings, Environmental Services, Oil and Gas Storage Tanks and Heat Exchanger Replacement and Refurbishment
Revenue£697.1 million (2013)[1]
£41 million (2013)[1]
£23.5 million (2013)[1]
Number of employees
18,000 (2014)[2]
Websitewww.capeplc.com

Cape plc is a British energy services company based in West Drayton, Middlesex. It was acquired by Altrad in September 2017.

History

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The company was founded in 1893 as the Cape Asbestos Company with the objective of mining asbestos in the Orange Free State and importing it into European countries where it could be woven into fire-resistant materials.[3] By 1913 it had four factories in the London area including a facility in Barking[3] and in 1939 it opened a manufacturing facility at Acre Mill near Hebden Bridge to meet the demand for gas mask filters made from blue asbestos during the Second World War.[4] In 1976 it established a scaffolding division[5] and in the late 1970s it developed asbestos-free products such that by 1980 it had become the world's foremost supplier of asbestos-free protection and insulation board.[6] Although it had a full listing during the 1980s it was at that time 67.3% owned by Charter Consolidated plc.[6]

In 1990, the company was involved in an important UK company law case, Adams v Cape Industries plc, concerning separate legal personality and limited liability of shareholders for asbestos related injuries.[7] A subsequent related case in 2012, Chandler v Cape plc, also involved the company.[8]

It transferred from a full listing to the Alternative Investment Market in 2002 in a bid to cut costs[9] and it reached a settlement in 2003 to pay £7.5 million to 7,500 claimants from South Africa who had been seeking compensation over many years for asbestos-related health problems.[10] In 2006 it established a £40 million fund for claimants based in the UK.[11]

In 2006 it bought DBI, an industrial cleaning specialist based in the UK,[12] and in 2007 it acquired PCH, a scaffolding and hoist company based in Australia.[13] In June 2011 it was transferred back to a full listing from the Alternative Investment Market and was restructured in such a way that it was ultimately Jersey-registered.[14]

The company was acquired by Altrad for £332 million in September 2017.[15]

In 2023, MPs and asbestos victim campaigners in the UK called on Cape to provide a £10m donation towards mesothelioma research. This is due to documents[16] released after a long running court battle showing Cape "provided misleading reassurance about the dangers of asbestos".[17] Labour MP Ian Lavery, chair of the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on occupational safety and health, and the group’s other members, said: "Knowing the links between the products made by your company, the role of Cape in knowingly putting more people in danger, and the devastating consequences, we appeal to your company to make this donation. Mesothelioma is always terminal, and Britain has the highest rates of anywhere in the world."[18]

Operations

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Cape provides "non-mechanical" multi-disciplined integrated support services covering such disciplines as access, scaffolding, insulation, coatings, passive fire protection, refractory linings, environmental services, oil and gas storage tanks and heat exchanger replacement and refurbishment, project management and other essential services to major industrial clients in the energy sector.[19]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Preliminary Results 2013" (PDF). Cape plc. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
  2. ^ "Cape: About Cape".
  3. ^ a b "Cape Asbestos Company" (PDF). London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Retrieved 2011-09-17.[permanent dead link‍]
  4. ^ "Acre Mill". Retrieved 2011-09-17.
  5. ^ "Some significant events in UK asbestos compensation 2004/5" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-09-17.
  6. ^ a b "Charter Consolidated PLC" (PDF). Competition Commission. Archived from the original on 2007-10-24. Retrieved 2011-09-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. ^ Kershaw, David (2012). Company Law in Context. OUP Oxford. p. 147. ISBN 9780199609321.
  8. ^ Meeran, Richard (2021). Human Rights Litigation Against Multinationals in Practice. OUP Oxford. p. 64. ISBN 9780198866220.
  9. ^ "Cape to move to AIM". Cape plc. 10 April 2002. Retrieved 2011-09-17.
  10. ^ "Case profile: Cape/Gencor lawsuits (re So. Africa)". Business and Human Rights Resource Centre. Archived from the original on 2011-08-30. Retrieved 2011-09-24.
  11. ^ "Asbestos Victims Groups Warn Cape on it's [sic] proposed Asbestos Fund". Hazards Magazine. 2006. Retrieved 2011-09-24.
  12. ^ "Cape acquires DBI". 8 January 2007. Retrieved 2011-09-17.[dead link‍]
  13. ^ "Cape bids £95m for PCH Group after demand from shareholders". Yorkshire Post. 14 September 2007. Retrieved 2011-09-17.
  14. ^ "LG advises Cape Plc on proposed new international holding company and move to the LSE market". LG. 12 May 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-11-03. Retrieved 2011-09-24.
  15. ^ "Altrad Bids £332 Million to Buy Cape". Scaffolding Magazine. 7 July 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
  16. ^ "Cape Documents".
  17. ^ Siddique, Haroon (March 20, 2022). "UK asbestos maker withheld information on material's risks, court papers show". The Guardian.
  18. ^ Siddique, Haroon (January 22, 2023). "MPs urge asbestos company to pay £10m to fund cancer research". The Guardian.
  19. ^ "Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2010" (PDF). Cape plc. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2012. Retrieved 2011-09-17.
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