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Le Mans / ALMS
LE MANS: Martin Birrane Speaks On Lola’s Future
Lola Group Executive Chairman speaks for first time following company's administration in May...
Lola Group Executive Chairman Martin Birrane. (Photo: LAT)
Shockwaves were sent through the sports car racing world last May when Lola Cars International went into administration following months, if not years, of financial difficulties.
The man at the head of Lola for the last 15 years, Martin Birrane, has been quiet over the matter, until now. Below is a Q&A with the Lola Group Executive Chairman that SPEED.com has obtained, which sheds significant light into what led up to the company's administration and what the future could hold for the famed British manufacturer.
Interview by: Lee Armes, Sniffer Media
What led up to the administrators being called into Lola in May and why did you make that decision?
Martin Birrane: After owning and investing in Lola for nearly 15 years it was not businesslike to keep supporting the two trading companies in the face of a number of difficulties. To put this into perspective I invested a further £4m cash in the seven months from August 2011, the last injection being made in March this year.
In 2011 we became involved in the Lola Drayson electric LMP car project. The Board agreed a modest level of investment but the reality turned out to be work in excess of £670K for which no contribution was received from Drayson. This work diverted the resources of some of our top engineers. The 2012 Le Mans Prototype car build ran late resulting in a lot of the components being outsourced. You never make money on LMP car sales, the profit coming from spares, but these delays caused additional losses.
In the Composites business there were delays in customers placing orders for key projects where we had planned for resources to be utilized. We had a great customer base in Lola Composites and we always provided the highest levels of customer service. Many of these customers are still being served.
Another significant event in 2011 was the decision by HMRC not to pay outstanding Research and Development claims and to compound this decision by asking for a rebate on earlier claims. Given Lola’s involvement in High Tech business it seems astounding that the dispute ended up being focused on Lola’s status as an SME (small or medium sized enterprise) as a result of my personal involvement in other completely different businesses. At a time when the Government is supposed to be helping SME’s it seems ironic that their Agency was intent on hammering a nail into our coffin. The amount in question was not insignificant. It was in the order of £1.4m.
Throughout my ownership of Lola we have ridden the economic storms, although this recession, which has been continuing now for five years and is the worst since the mid 70’s, put too much strain on both trading businesses simultaneously.
What do you think the future holds now for the Lola brand in motor sport?
MB: The Lola brand has earned a 54 year reputation at the highest levels in motor sport and is now leveraged into other high technology sectors. The brand is owned by Lola Group Holdings, which is not in Administration, and it is my wish that we can find an entity that wants to continue the brand for their own motor sport projects, such as Formula 1 or LMP. The purchaser could come from within motor sport or perhaps the automotive sector in places such as China or the Far East where they are seeking a brand to promote their existing products on a World stage.
The man at the head of Lola for the last 15 years, Martin Birrane, has been quiet over the matter, until now. Below is a Q&A with the Lola Group Executive Chairman that SPEED.com has obtained, which sheds significant light into what led up to the company's administration and what the future could hold for the famed British manufacturer.
Interview by: Lee Armes, Sniffer Media
What led up to the administrators being called into Lola in May and why did you make that decision?
Martin Birrane: After owning and investing in Lola for nearly 15 years it was not businesslike to keep supporting the two trading companies in the face of a number of difficulties. To put this into perspective I invested a further £4m cash in the seven months from August 2011, the last injection being made in March this year.
In 2011 we became involved in the Lola Drayson electric LMP car project. The Board agreed a modest level of investment but the reality turned out to be work in excess of £670K for which no contribution was received from Drayson. This work diverted the resources of some of our top engineers. The 2012 Le Mans Prototype car build ran late resulting in a lot of the components being outsourced. You never make money on LMP car sales, the profit coming from spares, but these delays caused additional losses.
In the Composites business there were delays in customers placing orders for key projects where we had planned for resources to be utilized. We had a great customer base in Lola Composites and we always provided the highest levels of customer service. Many of these customers are still being served.
Another significant event in 2011 was the decision by HMRC not to pay outstanding Research and Development claims and to compound this decision by asking for a rebate on earlier claims. Given Lola’s involvement in High Tech business it seems astounding that the dispute ended up being focused on Lola’s status as an SME (small or medium sized enterprise) as a result of my personal involvement in other completely different businesses. At a time when the Government is supposed to be helping SME’s it seems ironic that their Agency was intent on hammering a nail into our coffin. The amount in question was not insignificant. It was in the order of £1.4m.
Throughout my ownership of Lola we have ridden the economic storms, although this recession, which has been continuing now for five years and is the worst since the mid 70’s, put too much strain on both trading businesses simultaneously.
What do you think the future holds now for the Lola brand in motor sport?
MB: The Lola brand has earned a 54 year reputation at the highest levels in motor sport and is now leveraged into other high technology sectors. The brand is owned by Lola Group Holdings, which is not in Administration, and it is my wish that we can find an entity that wants to continue the brand for their own motor sport projects, such as Formula 1 or LMP. The purchaser could come from within motor sport or perhaps the automotive sector in places such as China or the Far East where they are seeking a brand to promote their existing products on a World stage.
Monterey
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