Architectural Aluminium incurs a loss of €988,000, high court appoints provisional liquidators to protect its assets

The Architectural Aluminium Ltd., a construction company that erected extensive cladding on many well-known industrial and commercial structures, including Terminal 2 at Dublin Airport, has been appointed joint provisional liquidators by the High Court. The construction company based in Dublin's Western Business Park had gone bankrupt after registering losses of almost €988,000 up to October.

By the end of the next month, more losses of about €1.6 million are anticipated, and the total amount owed to creditors is already €5.2 million. It has 133 employees. To protect the company's assets, particularly the items it had stored on several sites in Dublin, Kilkenny, and Carlow, the firm's directors petitioned the court on Friday to appoint a provisional liquidator.

The petition claimed that there was a possibility that the cladding or other materials may be put on almost finished buildings, removed, or damaged, leaving the corporation with no negotiating power with contractors about the winding down of contracts.

According to the directors, negotiating an orderly wind-down of work with a small team maintained to complete it is the best method to guarantee the most value for the benefit of creditors. The board of directors thinks combined liquidators will be better able to negotiate and oversee a wind-down.

The company stated that it was due substantial sums for projects almost at the installation stage. Still, the announcement of its insolvency would result in the presentation of sizable contra charges, which the interim liquidators may handle more effectively. According to the petition, the firm had been losing money since 2009–10 and experienced a deficit of more than €15 million on its financial sheet.

Since its founding 49 years ago, the firm has faced several challenges but has always been able to go forward, according to an affidavit signed by Simon Kenny. It developed into a significant force in the cladding industry. Still, the recession that began in 2008 "had a tremendous toll," he added, with the majority of its projects being postponed or cancelled.

By 2014, sales had fallen to around €6 million. As a result of severe budget cuts, some highly experienced employees were lost, and Mr Kenny said that it is still challenging to find top-notch candidates today. The board decided to dissolve the business during its meeting on December 14.

In light of his conviction that the company will likely be wound up at the petition's full hearing, Mr Justice Conor Dignam named John McStay and Tom Rogers of McStay Luby accountants as temporary liquidators. The petition will be fully heard next month when creditors and other parties are informed.