discoverie group plc said wednesday that firsthalf pretax profit and revenue rose on higher sales and operating efficiencies and the second half has started well the ukbased electronics manufacturer posted a pretax profit of 148 million pounds 176 million for the six months ended sept 30 up from gbp64 million a year before revenue rose to gbp2197 million from gbp1743 million reflecting a strong increase in group sales with growth reported across both divisions the company said it had a record order book of gbp257 million up 21 compared to september 2021 and a strong pipeline of acquisition opportunities in development discoverie said the second half has begun well with further organic sales growth over last year and it expects the order book to normalize as it converts into sales it said it was on track to deliver fullyear underlying earnings in line with management expectations the discoverie business model has proven resilient through differing market conditions and with a pipeline of acquisition opportunities and a strong balance sheet the group is well positioned to make further progress chief executive nick jefferies said the board declared an interim dividend of 355 pence a share up from 335 pence a year before