Maintenance and cleaning chemicals manufacturer Zep Inc. (NYSE: ZEP), Atlanta, GA, reported sales for the fiscal 2015 first quarter ended Nov. 30, 2014, of $168.3 million, an increase of 2.1 percent compared to the same period a year ago. Profit rose 1.3 percent to $3.1 million.
The sales increase was due to increases in transportation-related end-markets and across retail channels of distribution, which helped drive organic sales gains that more than offset the net impact of the May 2014 fire.