TYRATECH, INC. / ANNUAL REPORT 2009
Directors' Report
The Directors present their report and the audited financial statements of TyraTech, Inc. for the year ended
31 December 2009.
RESULTS AND DIVIDENDS
The net loss for the year, after taxation, amounted to US$13.9 million against a net loss of US$17.4 million in 2008. No
dividends have been declared or paid.
PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES
The principal activity of the Group is the developing and commercializing of proprietary insecticide and parasiticide products which incorporate unique blends of natural, plant oil derived active ingredients.
BUSINESS REVIEW
A review of the Group's operations during the year, and the outlook for the future are given in the Executive Chairman's Review on pages 6 and 7.
Where the Directors' report (including the Executive Chairman's Statement and Financial Review) contains forward-looking statements, these are made by the Directors in good faith based on the information available to them at the time of the approval of this report. Consequently, such statements should be treated with caution due to their inherent uncertainties, including both economic and business risk factors, underlying such forward-looking statements or information.
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
The directors believe that research and product development play a vital role in the Group's long-term success. Research and development expenditure is expensed when incurred and for the year was US$ 7.0 million (2008-US$7.3 million) and net US$4.4 million (2008-US$4.6 million) after transferring US$2.6 million (2008: US$2.7 million) for collaborative revenue projects to cost of sales.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
The Group owns intellectual property and has taken steps
to protect this through patent applications, where, as of the date of this report, 11 patents were issued (2008-1) and 119 patents are pending (2008-22). The Group's key intellectual property is built around the screening methods for identifying active ingredients for synergistic receptor activation and the active ingredient combinations. The Directors believe that the intellectual property is of significant value to the business.
SUPPLIER PAYMENT POLICY
The Group's policy is to settle the terms of payment with suppliers when agreeing the terms of each transaction, or the terms of a continuing trading relationship, ensuring that suppliers are made aware of the terms of payment, and to abide by these terms whenever possible. The creditor days
at the year end were 66 days (2008-37 days) for the Group.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER
The Group is committed to a policy that provides all employees and potential employees with equality of opportunity
for selection and development regardless of age, gender, nationality, race, creed, disability or sexual orientation.
At the 31 December 2009 the Group had 31 employees (2008: 37 employees).
POLICY ON EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT
Briefing and consultative procedures exist throughout the Group to keep employees informed of general business issues and other matters of concern.
SAFETY, HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT
The Group is committed to maintaining high standards of safety, health and environmental protection by conducting itself in a responsible manner to protect people and the environment. The Company assesses its carbon footprint annually and for 2009 it is calculated at 610 metric tons (2008: 749 tons) and the Group is looking at strategies to reduce this further.
PRINCIPAL RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES
The management of the business and the nature of the Group's strategy are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. The Directors have set out below principal risks
facing the business:
History of Losses
The Group has experienced operating losses in each year since its inception and, as at 31 December 2009, had accumulated losses of US$63 million. The Group will incur further losses and there can be no assurance that the Group will ever achieve significant revenues or profitability.
Working Capital and Significance of the Fundraising
As at 31 December 2009, the Company had cash and short-term deposits of US$1.3 million. The Directors believe that, based on current forecasts, following receipt of the net
