DEMSPEC LTD
💤Zombieactive
SC463563 · ltd · incorporated 2013-11-12
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 Nov 2024
Net worth
£3.9k
book net assets
Opportunity
78/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other professional, scientific and technical activities n.e.c.
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 78/100 (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 (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)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
1 officers (1 active, 1 linked, 1 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
25 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
78/100Strong
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
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 105 (micro)Positive net assets
Net assets £3,933
Net assets shrinking
Down £9,911 YoY
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£4k
↓ 72% YoY
Current Assets
£18k
↓ 30% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)| Metric | 2024-11-30 | 2023-11-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £3.9k | £13.8k |
| Current assets | £17.7k | £25.3k |
| Net assets | £3.9k | £13.8k |
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
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (17 events)Click to expand
- 2025-02-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-03-14📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2024-03-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-03-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-03-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-02-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-03-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-03-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-03-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-02-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-11-18📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-02-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2014-11-13📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2013-11-12🏢Company incorporatedAs DEMSPEC LTD
- 2013-11-12➕EMSLIE, Derek appointeddirector
- 2013-11-12📄incorporation-companyincorporation · NEWINC
Owner dependency
88/100
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.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 63 — approaching natural succession window.
- +No director turnover: Company is 12 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
78/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 63. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 12 years.
- 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 Derek Emslie Individual · Scottish · DOB 06/1963 · age 63 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H M A ENGINEERING LTD→ SC388587 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 15y | — | — |
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| HALL 77 LIMITED→ SC449949 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| HANSON FOSTER ENGINEERING LTD→ SC508028 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| HFI BRIDGEHEAD SOLUTIONS INTERNATIONAL LIMITED→ SC662800 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| HIGHLAND PROJECT SERVICES LTD→ SC850905 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| HYDROGEN SYSTEMS ENGINEERING LIMITED→ SC866248 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| HYDROVOLVE LIMITED→ SC600031 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| HYVE ARCHITECTS LIMITED→ SC289669 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
| I-INSPIRE RESOURCES LTD→ SC736738 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| I. CAMERON COMMUNICATIONS LTD.→ SC137937 · est 1992 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 33y | — | — |
| IAIN GORDON ENGINEERING LIMITED→ SC286899 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2013-11-12
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC74909 — Other professional, scientific and technical activities n.e.c.
Registered office
3 Caroline's Wynd
Ellon
AB41 9LB
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-08-31
Last made up to: 2024-11-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-04
Last: 2025-10-21
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
EMSLIE, Derek→
Activedirector · ~63y · appointed 2013-11-12
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (25 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-02-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-24
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2024-03-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-03-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-03-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-03-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-02-26
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-11-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-03-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-11-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-03-27