Ireland's largest independent linen supplier, Celtic Linen, seeks court protection

A 90-YEAR-OLD COMPANY which was a market leader in the supply of linen to hotels, hospitals and the HSE, is insolvent, the High Court was told today.

Celtic Linen Ltd, which employs 380 people in Drinagh, county Wexford, sought the protection of the court through examinership because it had become loss-making in recent years.

Barrister Kelley Smith said the business had been in operation since 1926 and had been supplying bed linen, towelling and table linen to the hospitality sector and scrub suits, patient wear and ward linen to the healthcare sectors.

At the High Court today, Justice Michael Twomey appointed insolvency practitioner Tom Kavanagh of Deloitte Ireland as interim examiner of the company after hearing it had a reasonable prospect of survival as a going concern if certain steps were taken.

Celtic Linen's complex

Smith, counsel for the company, told the court that an independent expert’s report had stated the company could survive if it can secure new investment as well as reducing its costs.

Another step identified by the independent expert was that the examiner put together a scheme of arrangement with the company’s creditors, she said.

Old equipment

Smith said the company would also need to upgrade its equipment as its machinery was old and prone to breaking down. Its difficulties were due to its cost base being too high. It had also lost customers to new entrants into the market.

She told the court that last year the company put in place a project designed to restructure its business but certain aspects of the plan were unsuccessful.

One of the company's machines

She said the company’s biggest creditor, AIB bank, was supporting the application for the appointment of an examiner.

The company’s latest accounts, for the year to the end of February 2015, show it made a loss of €476,500 for the 12-month period after returning a slender profit in 2014.

Smith said that on a going-concern basis the company has a deficit of liabilities over assets of €2.7 million. If the firm was to be liquidated that deficit would rise to €9.3 million.

She told Judge Twomey that the company has a 19% market share in the healthcare linen sector and 15% in the hospitality linen market and annually supplies 41 million pieces of linen from its facility at Drinagh.

The judge adjourned the matter to a date in October.

Additional reporting Peter Bodkin

Note: Due to an error in the editing process, a previous version of this article incorrectly stated the trading status of Celtic Linen.