AUTOMATIC COOLING ENGINEERS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC035099 · ltd · incorporated 1960-04-06
Investment thesis
Established operating company — standard diligence applies, no dominant angle.
Why interesting: Live, filing, normal profile.
Why risky: No standout signals in either direction.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£320.7k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other specialised construction activities n.e.c.
Sector: Construction
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 46690Wholesale of other machinery and equipment
- 71129Other engineering activities
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 69-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 69). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 2 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · oldest 50.1y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 50.1 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Cashflow trend is negative — lender view likely cautious.
Data confidence
Overall: high (80/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
Company profile
address, 3 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
8 officers (2 active, 8 linked, 7 with DOB)
88
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
3 connected companies via shared directors
54
Filing history
110 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
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102Positive net assets
Net assets £320,744
Net assets shrinking
Down £292,413 YoY
Cash YoY
-23%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£572k
↓ 23% YoY
Net Worth
£321k
↓ 48% YoY
Current Assets
£648k
↓ 32% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £320.7k | £613.2k |
| Current assets | £647.7k | £947.9k |
| Cash | £571.9k | £745.8k |
| Debtors | £73.7k | £198.1k |
| Net assets | £320.7k | £613.2k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
2 signals 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
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (26 events)Click to expand
- 2025-10-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-02-26📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2025-02-26📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2025-02-26📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2025-02-02➖MCKENZIE, Catherine resignedsecretary
- 2025-02-02➖MCKENZIE, Catherine resigneddirector
- 2024-05-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-07-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-09-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-11-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-03-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-12-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-07-01📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2015-12-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-07-21➖MCKENZIE, Shane Michael resigneddirector
- 2015-03-17➖ALLAN, David William resigneddirector
- 2013-02-20➕ALLAN, David William appointeddirector
- 2006-07-18➖MAGUIRE, Stephen Thomas resigneddirector
- 2004-07-01➕MAGUIRE, Stephen Thomas appointeddirector
- 1994-11-15➖MCKENZIE, James Collins resigneddirector
- 1977-07-21🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
- 1976-03-25🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company
- 1960-04-06🏢Company incorporatedAs AUTOMATIC COOLING ENGINEERS LIMITED
Owner dependency
81/100
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
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 69 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
66/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 69. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 66 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
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
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Kevin Colin Mckenzie Individual · British · DOB 07/1957 · age 69 | — | — | sig. influencesignificant influence | 06/04/2016 |
Mr John Foster Fitzgerald Mckenzie Individual · British · DOB 08/1958 · age 68 | — | — | sig. influencesignificant influence | 06/04/2016 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mrs Catherine Mckenzieceased 02/02/2025· significant influence
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
🔒Co-director network graph
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
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| BOILER REPAIRS & SERVICES LTD→ SC818148 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
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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
Incorporated1960-04-06
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC43999 — Other specialised construction activities n.e.c.
Registered office
96 Milnbank Street
Glasgow
G31 3AL
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-05
Last: 2025-08-22
Officers (2 active · 6 resigned)
Active
Active
MCKENZIE, Catherine→
Resignedsecretary · resigned 2025-02-02
ALLAN, David William→
Resigneddirector · ~53y · appointed 2013-02-20 · resigned 2015-03-17
MAGUIRE, Stephen Thomas→
Resigneddirector · ~59y · appointed 2004-07-01 · resigned 2006-07-18
MCKENZIE, Catherine→
Resigneddirector · ~92y · resigned 2025-02-02
MCKENZIE, James Collins→
Resigneddirector · ~97y · resigned 1994-11-15
MCKENZIE, Shane Michael→
Resigneddirector · ~61y · resigned 2015-07-21
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Virgin Money Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company | Floating charge | 1 property | 21/07/1977 | — | |
| outstanding | Virgin Money Clydesdale Bank Public Limited Company | Standard security | 1 property | 25/03/1976 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (110 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-10-16
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-31
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2025-02-26
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-02-26
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2025-02-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-05-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-07-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-09-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-08-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-11-23
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-09-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-03-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-09-03