Engineering administration puts 32 jobs at risk
A 157-year-old engineering firm has buckled under the pressure of an ongoing pension deficit and slow order book, leading it to call in administrators.
Mitchell Dryers in Carlisle went into administration on September 21, after 157 years of trading.
Some 32 jobs are at risk if administrators at Armstrong Watson fails to find a suitable buyer.
Speaking to News and Star, joint administrator Mike Kienlen, of Armstrong Watson, said: “The business has a historic pension deficit that the company has been struggling with for a little while.
“That has been compounded by a lack of orders.
“A drop in demand brought the firm’s directors to the decision that administrators needed to be called in.”
Mitchell Dryers was set up in 1859 and for more 80 years have specialised in industrial drying. It has been independently owned since 2004.
The company has previously traded in Europe, North and South America, the Middle East and Far East.
