Benjamin Wiles and Geoff Bouchier of Duff & Phelps were appointed joint administrators of the Hereford-based business last Thursday (28 February).
“Since its acquisition in 2017 the company has attracted substantial investment, however, remained loss-making,” said Wiles.
“With no immediate buyer for the business as a going concern we were left with no option but to close the business and inform the staff that they had been made redundant.”
The business closed its doors and ceased work in progress with immediate effect. While the exact number of job losses was not stated, in its most recent accounts, for the period ended 31 December 2017, the company employed 50 staff.
Wiles added the administrators are in negotiations with a third party over the acquisition of “certain assets, including the future orders and work in progress”. The identity of the third party has not yet been disclosed.
Vision Gelpack manufactured polyethylene products, from films, food grade bags, sacks, sheets and tubing in both virgin and recycled polymer grades.
It served a range of sectors from local authority, waste and clinical waste management through to general industrial and food processing.
The business held accreditation to ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, UN certified clinical waste and BRC Grade A certification.
A spokesperson for Visionscape said the group is shutting down its single-use plastic production lines as part of its sustainability commitment and will be refocusing its efforts on its recycling and resource recovery subsidiaries.
“The decision to put the company in administration mirrors harsh realities to do with future prospects that have been affected by the uncertainty surrounding the Brexit process,” the spokesperson said.
“One of the significant factors in the decision is also the recent directive by the EU that has introduced restrictions on single-use plastic products by 2021.
“We regrettably have to make some tough decisions to position us for success in a highly competitive marketplace that is rapidly evolving.”
Gelpack Excelsior, which was founded in 1988, had gone into administration alongside Gelpack Industrial in August 2017. 175 employees were made redundant from the two compaies at the time.
