黑洞社区

Modular housebuilder Ilke Homes has been put into administration, the company confirmed this morning, having been unable to secure a buyer despite last-ditch efforts over the last month.

At 11am this morning, Clare Kennedy, Catherine Williamson and Deborah King of consultant AlixPartners were appointed joint administrators to Ilke Homes Holdings Limited, Ilke Homes Land Limited and Ilke Homes Limited, which collectively trade as Ilke Homes.

The appointments were made at the request of Ilke Homes鈥� directors.

In a statement, the administrators said the move would see the immediate closure of the firm鈥檚 250,000 sq ft light gauge steel frame factory in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, and the stopping of 鈥渁ll site activities鈥�.

As a result, they said 鈥渢he significant majority of the Companies鈥� 1,150 staff will be made redundant with a small number being retained to assist the administrators in winding up the Companies鈥� affairs鈥�.

The firm, which had been late filing accounts due to concerns from auditors over a lack of available funding, was plunged into crisis at the start of this month when investors told the company鈥檚 bosses that they were pulling funding due to concerns over the rate of cash burn.

That decision prompted an immediate halt in production at Ilke鈥檚 factory and the start of an .

At first, Ilke said it had  but today鈥檚 action indicates none were ultimately willing to buy the business as a going concern. The administrators said the collapse followed an 鈥渆xtensive exercise by [Ilke] to seek either a fresh injection of capital or a going concern purchaser鈥�.

The administrators鈥� statement added that while Ilke had displayed a 鈥渟trong product and pipeline鈥�, it had been hit in recent months by 鈥渦nprecedented inflation and a lack of land supply linked to planning processes鈥�, meaning 鈥渢he business has not been able to secure the further investment needed to take it forward鈥�.

Ilke filed a notice of intention to appoint an administrator on 10 days ago but at that point said the action was purely a 鈥減rotective鈥� measure to enable it to keep creditors at bay while it sought to secure a deal.

The administration comes despite Ilke having secured , including Fortress Capital, TDR Capital and Sun Capital, which at the time the firm described as 鈥渢ransformational鈥�. It said it planned to expand production at the firm to 4,000 homes per year and create up to 1,000 extra jobs.

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黑洞社区 understands that while Ilke had been successful in achieving significant sales, the overheads from its factory meant that its rate of cash burn was still too high.

The news is the latest blow to the modular or volumetric housebuilding sector, which has seen a raft of high-profile closures and set-backs in recent months.

In just the last two months L&G Modular has shut its doors to new business, while Berkeley Group has also announced that it will not be putting its modular factory into 鈥渇ull production鈥�.

These blows came after the collapse of the Urban Splash joint venture with Sekisui last year, which, like Ilke, had received a major investment from Homes England and the administration of Caledonian Modular.

Clare Kennedy, joint administrator and managing director at AlixPartners, said: 鈥淭his is an incredibly difficult time for all associated with Ilke Homes, and in particular its employees, who have worked tirelessly alongside management over recent months to find a resolution.

鈥淯nfortunately, the market and economic headwinds have proven too strong to overcome, thus leading to today鈥檚 appointment. Our focus now is on helping all stakeholders, employees, suppliers and customers alike, to find the best possible outcome in this undoubtedly difficult situation for all.鈥�

Ilke customers including Places for People, have already started , with the 231,000-home housing association saying last week that it was looking at a 鈥渄ifferent route鈥� to housing delivery on some of its sites.