ADMINISTRATORS are looking to find a buyer for Dukinfield-based Bardsley Construction which went into administration days before Christmas when more than 200 staff were made redundant.
It came as a surprise as the builders had a healthy order book for 2020 when a series major contracts were due to start.
However, the company was unable to withstand “massive cash-flow problems” which forced it to call in administrators.
Richard Merrin, from administrators Duff & Phelps, explained the preferred option is to find a buyer for Bardsley Construction.
Failing that, however, they would have no choice but to organise a sale of the company’s assets.
Steven Muncaster and Stephen Clancy, of Duff & Phelps, were appointed joint administrator of Bardsley Group Limited, Bardsley Construction Limited and Bardsley Construction Holdings Limited on Friday, December 20.
According to a statement from the administrators: “The group has experienced challenging market conditions including the timely delivery of a number of recent projects, resource issues within the sector, contractual disputes with private clients together with new work opportunities being delayed as a result of the uncertainty in the economic and political environment.”
Mr Muncaster added: “We were formally engaged in November 2019 to advise the group on its current financial position and to facilitate an accelerated merger and acquisition process or seek immediate investment to tide the group over into 2020 when a number of new orders are expected to come online.
“Despite a number of expressions of interest no acceptable formal offers have been made for the group, leaving the directors with no option but to appoint administrators.
“The companies normally shut down over the Christmas period and as such this timing enabled us to undertake a further review of the financial position of the group while marketing the business and assets for sale. We worked solidly over the holiday period to facilitate this.”
The joint administrators said they were looking at a sale of the business and assets of the companies as a going concern in the first instance.
Bardsley has active schemes across the residential, education and commercial sectors. Projects currently on site in Manchester include the 12-storey Mount Yard residential project at MeadowSide for FEC, set to complete in summer 2020, and the £30million Blossom Street PRS project for Mulbury, due to be handed over early in the new year.
Bardsley recently completed the redevelopment of Riverside House in Salford for Muse, and last month was announced as the winner of a £11m contract for Tameside College in Ashton.
Bardsley Construction is based at Headway House, Globe Lane, Dukinfield, and the home page on its website is emblazoned ‘With over 55 years of heritage, Bardsley has a solid foundation’.
It continued: “What’s more, we’ve built a dynamic, innovative and creative multi-disciplinary business on it. With £60m+ turnover, the company has grown to be the by word for delivery and customer satisfaction.”
According to Bardsley’s last set of accounts, published in May 2018 for the year ending December 2017, the company has 184 staff, with a turnover of £68.3m, and a pre-tax profit of £1.1m.
The first warning signs emerged on Thursday, December 19 when subcontractors on some sites were told not to turn up for work the following day.
That was followed by news the company had collapsed and administrators appointed.
Bardsley Construction had enjoyed growth in the last few years on the back of the building boom in the North West.
• Anybody who believes they are a Bardsley Construction creditor should email bardsleyconstruction@duffandphelps.com