ABSOLUTE CONSULTING ENGINEERS LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
05824974 · ltd · incorporated 2006-05-22
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 May 2025
Net worth
£16.1k
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other engineering activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. 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 (58/100).
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
5 officers (1 active, 5 linked, 2 with DOB)
78
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
62 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
75/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £16,067
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£16k
↑ 18% YoY
Current Assets
£32k
↑ 20% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-05-31 | 2024-05-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £17.5k | £15.0k |
| Current assets | £31.9k | £26.5k |
| Net assets | £16.1k | £13.7k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
1
filing
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (26 events)Click to expand
- 2026-02-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2025-02-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-02-26📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2024-02-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-02-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-06-22📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2022-06-22📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2022-02-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-06-14📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-06-14📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2021-05-31📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2021-05-31📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2021-05-28➖AYLING, Isobel Raina resignedsecretary
- 2021-05-28➖AYLING, Isobel Raina resigneddirector
- 2021-02-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-01-13📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-01-13📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-02-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2006-05-22🏢Company incorporatedAs ABSOLUTE CONSULTING ENGINEERS LIMITED
- 2006-05-22➕AYLING, Jonathan Robert appointeddirector
- 2006-05-22➕AYLING, Isobel Raina appointedsecretary
- 2006-05-22➕TEMPLE SECRETARIES LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2006-05-22➖TEMPLE SECRETARIES LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2006-05-22➕AYLING, Isobel Raina appointeddirector
- 2006-05-22➕COMPANY DIRECTORS LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
- 2006-05-22➖COMPANY DIRECTORS LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
85/100
Critical — business is the founderThe 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 20 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
68/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 20 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 20 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
cleanNo red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Jonathan Robert Ayling Individual · English · DOB 04/1971 · age 55 | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting | 06/04/2016 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mrs Isobel Raina Aylingceased 11/06/2021· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Professional services · NR postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10TH FLOOR DEVELOPMENT LIMITED→ 15899521 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 2020 EXECUTIVE SEARCH LIMITED→ 12126265 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| 5501VM LTD→ 11282293 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| 888 CONSULTING LTD→ 15108364 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ABLA EVJEG CONSULTANTS LIMITED→ 14707582 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ABMS FINANCIAL LTD→ 11579414 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ABSOLUTE COMMISSIONING LIMITED→ 10922717 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| ACADEMY FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT SERVICES LIMITED→ 09386526 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| ACCOUNTANCYSQUAD LTD→ 15116573 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ACCOUNTING ASSOCIATES NORWICH LIMITED→ 11543920 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ACCOUNTING EQUATIONS LTD→ 04407017 · est 2002 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 24y | — | — |
| ACCOUNTING FORWARD LTD→ 14208575 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2006-05-22
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC71129 — Other engineering activities
Registered office
11 Ash Close
Hethersett
Norwich
NR9 3RE
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-02-28
Last made up to: 2025-05-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-10-10
Last: 2025-09-26
Officers (1 active · 4 resigned)
AYLING, Jonathan Robert→
Activedirector · ~55y · appointed 2006-05-22
View their other companies + combined net worth →
AYLING, Isobel Raina→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2006-05-22 · resigned 2021-05-28
TEMPLE SECRETARIES LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2006-05-22 · resigned 2006-05-22
AYLING, Isobel Raina→
Resigneddirector · ~53y · appointed 2006-05-22 · resigned 2021-05-28
COMPANY DIRECTORS LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 2006-05-22 · resigned 2006-05-22
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (62 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-02-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-02-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-27
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2024-02-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-02-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-09-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-02-20
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-25
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2022-06-22
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2022-06-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-02-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-23
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2021-06-14