Dell profits from Limerick fall 79% as services end

REVENUES AND profits tumbled at the main Dell company in Limerick last year as the ending of manufacturing services and other functions took effect.

According to accounts just returned to the Companies Office, revenues at Dell Product Manufacturing Ltd plummeted by 80 per cent from $122.9 million (€89.3 million) to $25.1 million in the 12 months to the end of January 28 last.

Pretax profits decreased by 79 per cent from $9 million to $1.8 million.

Dell Products Manufacturing Ltd’s principal activity was providing certain ancillary global operations support, supply chain and logistics management and support, along with back-office IT and finance.

The directors’ report states that the company stopped providing these services to other group companies in January of this year. Prior to February 2010, it provided computer manufacturing services for group companies.

On January 11th, 2011, the company agreed to sell its remaining business to Dell Products. The figures show the numbers employed by the company last year dropped from 998 to 217 with the company’s staff costs declining from $65.2 million to $23.4 million.

Separate accounts for another Dell Irish subsidiary, Dell Direct, show its pretax profits dropped by 32 per cent from €11.5 million to €7.8 million. Dell Direct is the computer giant’s Dublin-based sales and support operation and revenues at the company last year increased by 23.75 per cent from €104 million to €128 million.

According to the directors’ report, the company – based at Cherrywood, Dublin – is one of the largest customer centres of its kind in the world. It serves the Irish market and the home and small-medium business sector in the UK. It has accumulated profits of €93.9 million. The staff last year rose from 1,066 to 1,199.