Orders averaged just £9m a month in the final third of 2001, compared with £28m in January 2001 and £22m in Feburary. Cost-cutting introduced by chief executive Tony Isaacs last August that led to the loss of 1,500 jobs increased earnings in every division except the speciality gases. There turnover declined by 36% in the last quarter, contributing to the profits slide. The job cuts cost the group £11.8m during the quarter.