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Orrmac Coatings, a spray painting company based in Sheffield, closed because of insolvency, even though staff believed the business had been performing well.
The main reasons given for its failure were the pandemic and a “lack of investment” and the closure has resulted in the loss of 20 jobs. The business had been in existence for 28 years and was found to have been loss-making for the two years before the closure. Attempts were being made to find a buyer, but without success, according to reports.
Despite this, employees were said to have been shocked by the closure, with one worker describing the way staff had been treated as “despicable”. He added they had been told, “order books were full”.
It is understood that staff had not been paid their final wages and they are now trying to claim unpaid wages, holiday pay, notice pay and statutory redundancy pay from the government’s Redundancy Payments Service. Each claim has its own limits and eligibility rules. Payment usually takes up to six weeks, though it can take longer.
Orrmac Coatings is also said to have numerous creditors, including suppliers and a recruitment agency that had been placing employees in roles just weeks before it closed.
It was claimed that Orrmac Coatings would have needed a substantial cash investment to remain viable and comply with safety regulations. The company’s general manager, Mark Woodward, had only been appointed a few months before the closure and he was said to be trying to turn the business around. However, he did not have enough time to do this, and investment from the company’s owners was not forthcoming.
Orrmac Coatings had been bought by Bradgate Containers from Leicestershire three years before the closure. Bradgate Containers had not commented on the closure at the time of the report.