A.C.I. ENGINEERING LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
04115048 · ltd · incorporated 2000-11-27
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£3.5k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 33170
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
Pursue
Asset-holding vehicle with a 61-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 61). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (76/100)

Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.

Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
7 officers (1 active, 7 linked, 3 with DOB)
79
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
78 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
79/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
82
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102
Positive net assets
Net assets £3,513

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£4k
Current Assets
£2k
Current Liabilities
—
£0£703£1k£2k£3k£4kMar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Total assets£3.5k—
Current assets£2.4k—
Debtors£2.4k—
Net assets£3.5k—

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

1 signal detected in this company's narrative notes — going-concern language, audit opinion, contingent liabilities, related-party transactions.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Recent activity

Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
2
filings
  • • 1 address
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (29 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-02-17
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  2. 2025-09-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2025-01-13
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  4. 2025-01-13
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  5. 2025-01-13
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  6. 2024-07-05
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2023-06-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2022-06-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2021-05-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2020-11-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2019-12-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2018-07-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2018-03-09
    ➖
    BACKLER, Ray, Dr resigned
    secretary
  14. 2018-03-09
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  15. 2017-06-14
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2016-08-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  17. 2012-02-29
    ➕
    BACKLER, Ray, Dr appointed
    secretary
  18. 2009-11-05
    ➖
    POST, Janette Lesley resigned
    secretary
  19. 2008-03-11
    ➖
    CHALMERS, Alexander Thomas resigned
    director
  20. 2000-12-12
    ➖
    PINK, Christopher resigned
    director
  21. 2000-12-06
    ➕
    WICKS, Ian appointed
    director
  22. 2000-12-06
    ➕
    POST, Janette Lesley appointed
    secretary
  23. 2000-12-06
    ➖
    APEX COMPANY SERVICES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  24. 2000-12-06
    ➕
    CHALMERS, Alexander Thomas appointed
    director
  25. 2000-12-06
    ➕
    PINK, Christopher appointed
    director
  26. 2000-12-06
    ➖
    APEX NOMINEES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director
  27. 2000-11-27
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As A.C.I. ENGINEERING LIMITED
  28. 2000-11-27
    ➕
    APEX COMPANY SERVICES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  29. 2000-11-27
    ➕
    APEX NOMINEES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

93/100
Critical — business is the founder

The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.

FACTORS
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 61 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

85/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 61. Early succession window.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 26 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
  • supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.

Red flags

1 low
Multiple registered office changes
low

Multiple address changes in a short period can indicate operational instability or admin disorder.

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Ian Wicks
Individual · British · DOB 07/1965 · age 61
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control24/11/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

7 specific questions generated from this company's actual signals — liquidity, leverage, director age, charge count, red flags, age-of-company.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →
🔒Advanced scoring suite

Exit-route ranking, improvement thesis, quiet-distress detector, covenant-pressure proxy, extraction monitor, approaching triggers, ownership drift, local cluster, value trap, debt capacity, archetype classification — 48+ scoring modules.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2000-11-27
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC33170 — SIC 33170

Registered office

2/3 Corner House Building
Red Lion Square
Hythe
Kent
CT21 5BD
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-08
Last: 2025-11-24

Officers (1 active · 6 resigned)

WICKS, Ian→
director · ~61y · appointed 2000-12-06
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BACKLER, Ray, Dr→
secretary · appointed 2012-02-29 · resigned 2018-03-09
Resigned
POST, Janette Lesley→
secretary · appointed 2000-12-06 · resigned 2009-11-05
Resigned
APEX COMPANY SERVICES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2000-11-27 · resigned 2000-12-06
Resigned
CHALMERS, Alexander Thomas→
director · ~83y · appointed 2000-12-06 · resigned 2008-03-11
Resigned
PINK, Christopher→
director · ~65y · appointed 2000-12-06 · resigned 2000-12-12
Resigned
APEX NOMINEES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2000-11-27 · resigned 2000-12-06
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Recent filings (78 total)

change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-02-17
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-09-03
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-01-13
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2025-01-13
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-01-13
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-07-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-06-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-06-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-05-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-11-26