Manufacturing jobs threat at Teesside firm Hertel Project Services

Mar 17 2010 by Iain Laing, The Journal

MORE than 90 jobs are under threat and 15 workers have lost their jobs after a Teesside manufacturing company went into administration.

Hertel Project Services (HPS), part of engineering giant Hertel, said growing losses in its nuclear, process, petrochemical and pharmaceutical work meant the business was “no longer sustainable in its current form”.

The news is another blow to the Wilton site near Redcar, which has seen the closures of the Dow, Croda and Invista operations.

The future for HPS remains uncertain, with administrator Vantis saying that finding a buyer for the business would be “difficult”.

Joint administrator David Thornhill said: “This is a company that has been making losses for some time. Its parent company has taken the decision that it can no longer afford to support the company.”

HPS director David Fitzsimons said: “We had anticipated that, operating as a standalone business, HPS would have the freedom to seek new work and customers.

“However, given the current tough business environment, this has been extremely difficult and the volume of work required in keeping the workshop busy has not been available.”