Twelve jobs have been saved at a Yorkshire packaging supplies company after a competitor stepped in to buy the business from Administrators.

Centerpac, based in Dinnington, Sheffield, has been acquired by the Samuel Grant Group, following a week-long race to find a buyer for the firm.

Centerpac, which supplies packaging materials and equipment, was forced to stop trading in December after it ran into financial difficulties.  It was placed into administration in January 2012, and Joint Administrators Graham Newton and Paul Bates of accountancy and business advisory firm BDO LLP appointed surveyors and valuers Charterfields to identify potential buyers. 

Ian Maycock, director of Charterfields, said: “As Centerpac had already stopped trading, we knew we only had a very short time to find a buyer before customers and staff deserted and the business simply fell apart.

“Fortunately we were able to identify a number of interested parties, including one from overseas.  Discussions were held, a buyer selected and the deal completed less than a week after the search began.  We are particularly pleased that the jobs of the 12 staff will be secured under the new ownership.”

Established in 1891, the Samuel Grant Group is the largest privately owned packaging distributor in the North, employing 80 staff and with depots in Leeds, Sheffield and Jarrow.

Chris Heaton, Finance Director of Charterfields Limited, is to swap the warm comforts of his desk for the freezing temperatures of Siberia.

Chris is in training for a full marathon across Lake Baikal in Siberia on the 3^rd March 2012.  Lake Baikal is the deepest lake in the world and holds 22% of the world’s fresh water.

Chris, who is an experienced marathon runner, is running for Target Ovarian Cancer, which concentrates on raising the ability of GPs to diagnose the disease early, and on providing practical assistance to sufferers. 

For more information from Chris’s blog and to give a donation, please click on the links below: -

www.chrisheaton.blogspot.com

www.justgiving.com/baikal 

On behalf of everybody at Charterfields Limited, we wish Chris well on his quest to raise funds for the charity.

A medical research equipment development company which helped devise an automated process for manufacturing artificial skin has gone into liquidation.

The Ideas Studio Limited, based in Kent, has closed after running into financial problems.  The liquidators, the KSA Group, have appointed asset valuation specialists Charterfields to sell its intellectual property assets.

The Ideas Studio developed an automated manufacturing process for Smart Matrix, an artificial skin product owned by the Restoration of Appearance and Function Trust (RAFT).

Smart Matrix acts like a second skin and could revolutionise the treatment of burns and ulcers. Once placed over a wound, it supports the growth of a network of functioning blood vessels.  Unlike other methods, it leads to the regrowth of the dermis, the lower layer of skin, encouraging rapid healing and allowing the treatment of more extensive wounds than ever before.

Whilst RAFT owns the rights to the Smart Matrix product, the prototype manufacturing robot, the Skin Bio Reactor, is now up for sale, together with a half share in the patent application for the automated manufacturing process.

Charterfields director Roger Cutting, who is leading the sale, said: “The potential now exists for an investor, or inventor, to purchase the rights held by The Ideas Studio and work with RAFT to continue towards the commercial automation of production.”

Also for sale is a half share in the existing UK patent for the Small Mammal System, which creates a stress-free environment for the biometric measurement of mice in scientific environments, and which was designed in cooperation with Cambridge University.  The product has been fully developed and is ready for sale, at around £250,000 per unit, to scientific institutions worldwide.

Roger Cutting added: “These could be excellent opportunities for investors, or medical technology businesses, to expand their portfolios with products that offer huge potential for growth.”

Over 80 people attended the first Insolvency Today North West Conference, which was sponsored by Charterfields.

The event, which took place on Thursday at the Midland Hotel in Manchester, brought together insolvency practitioners, banks, insurance companies, accountants, law firms and others working within the sector.

Organised by Insolvency Today magazine, the event featured debates on the impact of public sector cuts on the region, the proposed changes to pre-packs, the future of debt management plans and IVAs and the outlook for business rescues and insolvencies in 2011 and 2012.

Speakers and panelists included Jeremy Oddie, North West regional chair of R3, and deputy chair Richard Wolff, Claire Entwistle from the Insolvency Service, Manchester City Council treasurer Richard Paver, and senior figures from RBS and Barclays Corporate among others.

Charterfields’ director Ian Maycock said:  “As a key provider of services to the insolvency sector, we were delighted with the success of the inaugural North West conference which will now hopefully become an annual event.  Manchester is one of the biggest centres for insolvency work outside London and the event provides a forum for debate on some of the key issues facing the industry.”

David Fowlds - Ian Maycock - Declan Kilbride

Declan Kilbride

Matthew Corcoran

David Fowlds

Charterfields have expanded their services in Manchester with two senior appointments.

David Fowlds, previously a director at Colliers International has joined to establish a property team which will deal with all aspects of commercial property including acquisition and disposal services and consultancy advice on matters such as valuation, rent reviews, lease renewals and rating.

David has over 20 years’ experience in all aspects of commercial property,   particularly large industrial ‘sheds’ and the office and retail sectors.   He has advised a diverse range of clients including Arriva, Booker, British Land, Marshalls plc and Nationwide Building Society and regularly acts as expert witness in disputes.

Meanwhile Declan Kilbride, who specialises in valuations of plant & machinery and inventory, has joined from Edward Symmons.  Declan has over 20 years’ experience in valuations during which time he has carried out projects in locations worldwide including Thailand, the Philippines and Uganda and acted as an expert witness in a landmark case on compensation values.

At Charterfields, he will work with director Ian Maycock providing valuation and disposal services for insolvency practitioners.  However he will also be developing the firm’s operations amongst asset-based lenders and insurers, both markets in which he has considerable experience.

Graduate Matthew Corcoran has also been recruited as a plant and machinery surveyor.  Matthew was previously at JPS Surveyors and has experience of valuations for insolvency and asset-based lending.

Charterfields director Ian Maycock, who set up the Manchester office in 2007, said: “We have seen year on year growth in our Manchester office over the past four years and the time is now right to further develop our team.  David’s appointment will allow us to launch a real estate service in Manchester, while Declan and Matthew will further strengthen our valuations team.  Their arrival will enable us to expand our services and broaden our client base.”

An international search has been launched to find a buyer for Fishgate, Hull’s fish grading and auction facility, following its liquidation.

Charterfields have been appointed to sell the facility, which was the centre point of the city’s seafood trade before it was forced to close in June, due to the withdrawal of Icelandic fish supplies.

The Fishgate Hull Fish Auction was built in 2000 with £5 million of public and private investment.  It provides a state-of-the-art facility where fish brought from the northern seas off Iceland, Faroe and Norway can be weighed, graded and packed, then sold to buyers or wholesalers.

The 56,000 sq ft temperature-controlled premises includes processing plant and electronic auction room.  The business prided itself on being the most quality conscious fresh fish market in western Europe with fish being computer tracked from reception to dispatch to ensure traceability.

Liquidator John Russell from The P & A Partnership commented: “The company was not only a casualty of the financial crisis in Iceland but also the reduced haddock quota.”

Charterfields have been appointed to sell the processing assets and business, in partnership with property agents GVA Grimley.

Charterfields director Roger Cutting said: “We will be exploring all avenues in our attempt to find a buyer and will be looking not only within the UK but also in Europe, Iceland and Norway.  Ideally we would like a buyer that could continue to operate the business – if not the auction side, then at least the processing plant.  However we are considering all options.”