Central Building Contractors goes into administration

Glasgow-based Central Building Contractors has gone into administration, after the coronavirus lockdown exacerbated challenging trading conditions in the construction industry.

The family-run company, which employed 159 staff, was established in 1971 and provided construction design, development and maintenance services across Scotland.

Blair Nimmo and Geoffrey Jacobs of KPMG have been appointed as joint administrators and eleven company employees have been retained to assist in the process.

The imposing of coronavirus lockdown saw all projects closed down and the administrators said that the business would not be able to trade in administration, even if the lockdown is lifted soon.

The administrators said they were exploring the possibility of an early sale of the business and some of its assets. Its assets include three freehold properties, several contracts, an order book of work in progress and construction equipment.

Nimmo described the company as having a “rich history” and being well-known and highly-regarded in Scotland. However, he said: "Despite the efforts of the directors, the business faced a range of cash flow challenges in recent times, which were amplified by the recent Covid-19 lockdown.”

"We will be working to support the employees and have already initiated matters with relevant government agencies to ensure the full range of support is available to all those affected."

In the company’s last accounts, for the year ended September 30 2018, it reported turnover of close to £35.9 million, down slightly from £36.2 million in 2017. Gross profit stood at £3.75 million, down from £4.4 million in 2017.

At the time, the company reported fixed assets of £4.3 million and current assets of £18.1 million, up from £13.8 million 2017. Net assets stood at around £8.5 million.


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