The Hawk group of plant hire companies has gone into administration. According to the Group the liquidation of facilities management company Carillion a year ago was partly to blame for its demise. The group which is based in northwest Shropshire is one of the largest independent plant hire companies in the UK.
Joint administrator Sam Woodward commented, “The group’s cash flow had been impacted by a number of historical problematic contracts and a delay in the commencement of anticipated projects. Coupled with this, the group’s funding structure, with significant hire purchase and finance lease commitments put pressure on the cash flow at a time that asset utilisation was comparatively low.”
While the administrators did not mention Carillion by name, Hawk’s most recently filed accounts did. The strategic report for the year ended 31st December 2017 stated: “The liquidation of Carillion plc in January 2018 has meant some timing disruption as contacts previously awarded have had to be rescheduled. Due to the high level of credit insurance in place on Carillion plc there will be a minimal write off of balances outstanding at the time of liquidation.”
Sam Woodward continued: “We will now begin the process of seeking to find a suitable buyer for Hawk, to ensure the best possible outcome for all of the group’s stakeholders. In the meantime, we will seek to minimise the impact on the customer base by keeping assets on hire and maintaining service levels.”
Subsidiary Enverity Ltd, a ground survey and site inspection business based in Newark, which employs 20 staff, remains solvent and unaffected by the administration.
