A RENOWNED Glasgow architect, which worked on high-profile projects such as the city’s new Radisson Red Hotel, has gone into liquidation.
All 27 staff at ADF Architects were made redundant prior to the appointment of liquidators at accountancy firm French Duncan, which came after cash flow problems left the firm unable to pay wages. Provisional liquidator Brian Milne said the firm’s difficulties had been caused by the “delay or mothballing of a number of significant projects”.
ADF had worked on a number of major projects during its 30-year existence, including the £200m redevelopment of Glasgow Harbour.
It was led by managing director David Dunbar, a former president of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS).
Mr Milne said: “This is a very sad day for ADF Architects who were a renowned practice providing many high-quality designs over their 30 years of operations. The firm has had major cash flow problems this year and was unable to meet the wages bill in full at the end of January having had to pay the balance once funds had cleared. The company did not have sufficient funds to pay the wages at the end of February so decided that they could not continue trading.”
Mr Milne added: “The main reason for the liquidation was the delay or mothballing of a number of significant projects. This is a common issue in the architecture profession where work can be commissioned and completed over a considerable period, but ongoing payments are not made and can be dependent upon the submission for planning permission.
"If payments are delayed or a project does not go ahead then the practice may not be paid, or the payment is delayed for a considerable time resulting in serious financial issues and cash flow problems.”
The liquidator noted that the business could not be sold as a going concern because it is "not viable", and intends to dispose its main assets. Those comprise work in progress and debtors, it said.
Employees will be able to claim for arrears of pay, notice pay and redundancy from the Redundancy Payments Office, Mr Milne added.
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