Specialists at Hilco Industrial are organising the sale under instruction from administrators at Deloitte, which took over most of Paperlinx’s UK operations at the beginning of the month.
More than 260 lots, and hundreds of individual items, are detailed across four locations: Moulton Park, Brackmills, Manchester and Macclesfield.
The sale items are subject to change pending Deloitte’s progress in selling Paperlinx’s UK business and assets. It is a fluid situation; yesterday Premier Paper Group confirmed its purchase of the reel paper assets.
There is still speculation that a buyer will be found for the VTS wide-format business, with Amari Plastics the latest firm to be named as a possible purchaser.
Amari Plastics managing director Andy Carroll was unavailable for comment at the time of writing.
PrintWeek has learned that the crowdfunded bid set up by a former Paperlinx employee has been rejected.
The auction lots currently listed range from 23m and 12m-high warehouse pallet racking, to quirky items such as a snooker table and darts board in the Manchester games room.
“It’s a big organisation with numerous sites, covering a variety of processes. There is some pretty specialist equipment involved,” said Hilco director Ian Bacon.
A range of print kit is under the hammer, including wide-format digital printers from Canon, HP, Mimaki and Jetrix, as well as a Mojo 3D printer acquired for Paperlinx’s nascent 3D business.
The in-house printing department at Moulton Park included a Ryobi 522HE litho press, Polar guillotine and Duplo collator.
Paperlinx’s extensive cutting and sheeting facilities were kitted out with multiple Strachan Henshaw and Saval sheeters, as well as Wohlenberg, Cauhé and Polar cutting kit and a 1.4m-wide Dalren industrial laminating line.
The purpose-built, fully automatic Pemco packing line at Brackmills is also for sale by private treaty.
One of the most poignant items up for auction is a framed plate glass sign “W Lunnon & Co Paper Merchants”, commemorating a business that had been in existence since 1854.
The sale is scheduled to take place from 11-13 May. More details via www.hilcoind.com.
