A broken-down crane contributed to a six-month loss for Polaris holding company for Stevedoring Services — despite a small increase in cargo volume.

The firm posted a loss of $281,968 for the period between March and the end of September last year, equivalent to 23 cents a share.

But Polaris CEO Warren Jones said the cost of hiring a replacement crane and the cost of repairs ran to more than $200,000.

Mr Warren — who celebrated his first year in the job yesterday — added that other one-off costs like consultancy fees, training and restructuring at Stevedoring Services all contributed to the bottom line.

The six-month report said: “Cargo volumes were up a modest 1.3 per cent year over year and with Stevedoring Services rates held at prior year levels and a differing revenue mix, income of $4.9 million held consistent with the previous year.”

It added: “As Stevedoring Services continues to realign operations, there is the potential for further one-off charges.”

But the report predicted that the fiscal year due to end on March 31 next year would be “more robust”.

Mr Jones said the first three months of the reporting period were “strong then it fell off” — with a weaker summer and Christmas period following.

But he added: “As we look at the next fiscal year and we talk about a more robust year, we are talking about being in a position to control our costs.”

And Mr Jones said: “We’ve gone through the worst of it — unless we have a major accident and we have to repair something, we don’t anticipate costs like have to repair a crane.”

He added: “My remit was to look at turning the company around. We’re on a good path — what we did last year was designed to prepare us for the future and we also anticipate that volumes will pick up.”

Mr Jones said: “The great thing about us is we have a great workforce. They’re motivated and, through all we have endured last year, they’re ready to roll.

“They have risen to the challenge in relation to the changes we had to undergo and I think our customers will say we are not the same company in terms of service — we’re stronger and better.”