Romsey steel fabrication company sold after entering administration

MORE than 20 jobs have been saved after a Romsey-based steel fabrication company ran into financial difficulties.

SPF said that all 24 staff employed by Wessex Drawing Services on Romsey Industrial Estate have been retained in a sale of the business to a connected party.

Founded in 2014, Wessex Drawing Services initially traded successfully. However, financial challenges arose, with the directors injecting significant personal funds into the business.

The company also entered a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) to alleviate pressures and to continue operating. The company’s client base remained loyal and committed to the business throughout.

The impact of Brexit, however, followed soon after by the COVID-19 pandemic, caused significant further disruption. Pressures beyond the company’s control, compounded by staffing shortages led to technical breaches of the CVA in early 2023.

A winding-up petition was presented against the company and this prompted the directors to seek professional support from nationwide insolvency practitioner SFP. David Kemp, a director at SFP, was appointed and following initial discussions with the company, swift action was agreed to save the business and maximise the position for creditors.

A pre-pack Administration process has been agreed upon and pursued.

Wessex Drawing Services entered Administration on July 28 and a sale of the business and assets took place that day to Wessex Welding and Fabrications Limited for an undisclosed sum.

All 24 workers at the steel-fabrication company have been transferred to the new entity under the Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment rights.

Mr Kemp says that the support of a professional insolvency practitioner has helped protect jobs and livelihoods.

He said: “While the directors made every attempt to save the business, administration was the only realistic available resolution for the company’s challenges.

“External pressures have caused many businesses to struggle in recent times, and for any company that finds itself in difficulty we urge them to seek professional guidance at the earliest opportunity to secure the best result for the stakeholders/creditors, the company, and their people.”

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