Some 197 employees were made redundant when Go Plant, one of the UK’s largest suppliers of specialist vehicle hire to local authorities and the private sector, was sold out of administration for just £2m, according to documents seen by TheBusinessDesk.com.
The private equity-backed firm, which is based in Coalville, Leicestershire, but had nine depots across the UK was sold to Sweeptech Environmental Services, based in Berkshire, in a deal brokered by administrators from Alvarez & Marsal Europe at the beginning of May.
Go Plant’s troubles can be traced back to late 2023 when an employee lost their life after a health and safety incident involving one of the company’s vehicles. The incident remains the subject of an ongoing investigation by the Health and Safety Executive.
Following the incident, Go Plant put in place a number of operational safeguards, following advice, which impacted its cost base and impacted operational efficiency.
Endless carried out a review of the business and considered “strategic options” available to it to bring forward an exit of its investment.
Go Plant employed 330 people when Alvarez & Marsal was appointed. Some 115 of these were saved when the company was sold to Sweeptech.
Administrators documents show that, for the nine months to March 31, Go Plant made a lost of almost £3.2m.