However, after a difficult first half to 2013, with slow sales and closure of its Dunton brickworks costing £2.2m, sales picked up in the second half.
Turnover for the full year was up 12.6% to £25.9m (2012: £23.0m), through the sale of an extra seven million bricks. Excluding restricting costs, operating profit was steady at £1.4m, the same as in 2012, although the operating marine was therefore down.
The company says that having closed Dunton and sold surplus land it is now a transformed business, preparing to increase capacity to meet rising demand.
Indeed the whole brick industry is having to gear up for expansion now and prices are starting to rise, having remained flat through 2013.
In January 2014 Michelmersh began work to increase production capacity at its Freshfield Lane brickworks by 20%. This £2.2m investment will increase the group's 2015 output by six million bricks.
Industry brick stocks have reduced from 1.1 billion in 2008 to 332 million at the end of January 2014.
Michelmersh chairman Eric Gadsden said that this demonstrated that “industry dynamics have been completely transformed from a position of overstocking to a threat of shortages when construction indicators are now positive”.
He said: “The rebalancing will take time to feed through into a stable market, however at this early part of the year prices have firmed up significantly with customers now focusing on securing supply for their projects.”
CEO Martin Warner added: "After five very difficult years for the business and the industry, 2014 has started positively. With pricing and demand improving, increased production at our most efficient plant, and the other exciting initiatives for 2014, we believe that we will be able to more than hold our own in the future and the fruits of many years of hard work will start to become apparent."
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