UK administrations update: March 20 - 25

Since our last update, the following businesses have been confirmed as having fallen into administration. All dates indicate when the administration was posted by the Gazette and not necessarily the dates on which administrators were appointed.

Greener Living Limited – March 20
Greener Living Limited, a Sheffield-based air source heat pump and solar panel installation firm, has fallen into administration, appointing Ian McCulloch and Louise Williams of Opus Restructuring as joint administrators.

The company, which was founded in 2017 and claims to be among the UK’s largest air source heat pump installation companies, reported turnover of £9.4 million in the year ending December 31 2023, down from £12.4 million a year earlier.

Despite this, the company’s post-tax profits increased from £1278,159 to just under £331,000. At the time, its total net assets amounted to £647,683.

JDL Subcontracting Limited – March 20
JDL Subcontracting Limited, a York-based mechanical and electrical (M&E) specialist, fell into administration last week, with Lee Lockwood and Gareth Harris of RSM US Restructuring Advisory appointed as joint administrators.

Lee Lockwood commented: "The business has closed due to a significant downturn in work, combined with a historic debt burden, which was built up to keep the company trading during the COVID pandemic."

In the year ending September 30 2022, the company’s fixed assets were valued at £508,793 and current assets at close to £1 million. However, the company’s debts left it with net liabilities of nearly £77,000.

Find out more about JDL Subcontracting’s collapse

Silverbird Global Limited – March 21
Silverbird Global Limited, a London-based fintech that provides SMEs with multicurrency business accounts, fell into administration earlier this month, appointing Geoffrey Rowley and Daniel Conway of FRP Advisory as joint administrators.

In the company’s accounts for the year to May 31 2022, it reported revenue from continuing operations of £247,625, but fell to a £3.5 million post-tax loss. At the time, the company’s total equity stood at £6.9 million.

Culimeta-Saveguard Limited – March 21
Culimeta-Saveguard Limited, a Greater Manchester-based manufacturer of specialist acoustic and thermal insulation products for the industrial and automotive sectors, has fallen into administration and temporarily ceased trading.

The Tameside group has appointed Kerry Bailey and Lee Cause of BDO LLP as joint administrators. While it has temporarily ceased trading, no redundancies have yet been made as the administrators seek a buyer for all or parts of the business.

In its accounts for the year to December 31 2022, the group reported turnover of £15.6 million, down from £19.8 million a year earlier and fell from a post-tax profit of £115,319 to a loss of close to £50,000. At the time, its total equity amounted to £7.3 million.

Read about the latest trends in manufacturing M&A

Glenalmond Group Limited – March 22
Glenalmond Group Limited, a manufacturing group based in South Lanarkshire, has fallen into administration. Michelle Elliot and Allan Kelly of FRP Advisory were appointed as joint administrators to the group’s two subsidiaries, Valve Components Limited and International Oilfield Drilling Supplies Limited.

The group provided turnkey production services to the oil and gas, defence, aerospace and energy sectors, but had been hit by challenging trading conditions over recent years, as a result of loss-making contracts, a lack of future orders and an increased cost base following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Administrators secured the sale of group subsidiary IODS Pipe Clad Limited to an unnamed Scottish manufacturing firm, but the group and its two remaining subsidiaries have now ceased trading, with administrators seeking buyers for their assets.

In the year to March 31 2021, Glenalmond Group reported turnover of £17.7 million, down from £27.5 million a year earlier, while its pre-tax losses widened from £936,000 to over £1.1 million. At the time, the group’s total equity amounted to £5.4 million.

Balgownie Limited and Balgownie Rentals Limited – March 22
Balgownie Limited and Balgownie Rental Limited, a pair of Aberdeenshire businesses providing machinery for the agricultural, construction and ground care industries, fell into administration this month, with Richard Bathgate and Graeme Bain of Johnston Carmichael appointed as joint administrators.

The business, which can trace their roots back more than 100 years, had experienced cashflow difficulties in recent months. The joint administrators are now seeking a buyer for the businesses and assets.

In its accounts for the full year 2022, Balgownie Limited reported turnover of £25.6 million, up from £25.1 million in 2021, and operating profits of nearly £540,000, up from £383,717. At the time, its total equity was £47,538.

Find out more about this administration

JJD Plant Limited – March 22
JJD Plant Limited, a Durham-based company that provides renting and leasing of a wide array of heavy vehicles, fell into administration last week, appointing Richard Cole and Steve Kenny of KBL Advisory as joint administrators.

In its accounts for the year to January 31 2023, the company’s fixed assets were valued at £1.5 million and current assets at slightly over £500,000. However, at the time, its net liabilities amounted to £255,322.

Alucraft Systems Limited – March 22
Alucraft Systems Limited, an architectural glazing specialist based in Tamworth, fell into administration last week, with Helen Wheeler-Jones, Edward Williams and Peter Dickens of PwC appointed as joint administrators.

The business, which was working on Everton’s new Bramley-Moore Dock stadium, collapsed after several years of unprofitable trading amid an “extremely challenging trading environment in the UK”.

In its accounts for the year ending December 31 2022, the company reported turnover of £18.6 million, up considerably from £14.8 million a year earlier, but saw its post-tax losses soar from £1.8 million to close to £6.1 million. At the time, the company’s net liabilities amounted to £7.2 million.

Find out more about Alucraft’s administration

Luxdeco Limited – March 25
Luxdeco Limited, an ecommerce retailer of high-end furniture, fell into administration earlier this month, appointing Gary Shankland and Kevin Murphy of Begbies Traynor as joint administrators.

A statement on the company’s website read: "The administration moratorium provides a ‘breathing space’ during which we will assess whether a rescue of the company is feasible.”

In its accounts for the year to March 31 2022, the company’s fixed assets were valued at £676,588 and current assets at close to £2.2 million. However, at the time, the firm’s net liabilities totalled almost £11.2 million.

Find out more about rising insolvencies in the UK retail sector

Surgo Construction Limited – March 25
Surgo Construction Limited, a Newcastle-based construction company, fell into administration earlier this month following a period of challenging trading. Steven Ross of FRP Advisory and Stephen Lancaster of Lucas Ross were appointed as joint administrators, with the company ceasing trading.

The company had recovered from the heavy impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and reported turnover of £14.4 million and pre-tax profits of nearly £75,500 in the year to October 31 2022.

However, administrators said that it had “faced a number of challenges with projects in recent months that have been exacerbated by the headwinds facing the wider construction sector.”

Read about Surgo’s administration here

St Helens Chamber Limited – March 25
St Helens Chamber Limited, a chamber of commerce in St Helens, fell into administration earlier in March, appointing Jason Bell and Philip Stephenson of Grant Thornton as joint administrators.

The chamber had faced a range of headwinds, including funding issues, wider difficult economic conditions, a substantial, unexpected drop in the value of its office building post-COVID and the post-Brexit shift from EU funding to the UK government’s Shared Prosperity Fund.

In its accounts for the year to March 31 2023, the chamber reported turnover of £5.7 million, up from just under £5.5 million a year earlier, but saw its losses widen from £119,133 to just over £200,000. At the time, its net assets totalled £3.6 million.

Textile Recycling International Limited – March 25
Textile Recycling International Limited, a West Midlands-based group that collects, sorts and exports second-hand clothing and textiles, fell into administration last week, appointing Sarah O’Toole and Zelf Hussain of PwC as joint administrators.

The circumstances around its collapse have not been revealed, but in its accounts for the year to December 31 2021, it reported that, while trading was recovering, it was continuing to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the time, the business reported turnover of nearly £66.3 million and EBITDA of £11.4 million, both significant improvements on its 2020 figures. While losses also improved, these still stood at nearly £7.5 million. At the time, its net assets amounted to £13 million.


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