Around 140 jobs may be under threat after the Dudman Group, one of the south of England’s biggest independent aggregates firms, went into administration on Friday.
Grant Thornton was appointed to manage the administration of the 21-year-old firm, based in Southwick, West Sussex, late on Friday afternoon.
James Stares, one of the joint administrators, said the move was down to “cash flow pressures and the general economic climate”, adding that it wasn’t an “unusual story”.
Mr Stares wouldn’t confirm whether the firm’s 140 staff would face redundancy, but said the business “is under review at the moment.”
“As soon as we’ve concluded what the best option is we’ll swing that into action – there have been no redundancies at present,” he added.
The group had a £30m turnover in 2011, with £0.5m of pre-tax profit. Its tangible fixed assets totalled £35m, including property, plant and machinery and vehicles.
The firm said it was expecting to grow in 2012, despite pressure on fuel prices.
Dudman has grown steadily from a haulage firm to a large aggregate and concrete firm with its own shipping arm.
It covers Southern England with its main divisions, but also had a quarry in Cornwall and a depot in Goole on the Humber.
It also retains a transport fleet including tippers, arctics, mixers, tankers, flatbeds and sweepers.
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