A HEREFORD packaging firm which went into administration last month has been acquired by a global environment utility group.

The joint administrators of Gelpack Excelsior Limited and Gelpack Industrial Limited, Chris Pole and Mark Orton from KPMG, announced they completed a sale of the business and its assets to Visionscape Group, on September 21.

Under the name Vision Gelpack Ltd, the Hereford-based firm will remain a packaging film manufacturer although the plan is to invest in the facility to increase capacity and diversify the product range.

As part of the transaction, all remaining employees – seven in total – will transfer to the purchaser while Visionscape is also already in the process of actively recruiting to re-build the extended team.

A total of 175 redundancies were made when Gelpack went into administration.

Ian Harris, operations director at Gelpack, said: “This is exciting news for us and after a successful run for over 40 years, we are committed to continuing to grow the business and carry on the legacy under new leadership and direction. We look forward to the new chapter as we benefit from the new sources of capital through Visionscape’s geographical reach.”

Hary Ackerman, executive director at Visionscape Group, said the firm, which has offices in Nigeria, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, India and Colchester, was excited to welcome Gelpack to the group.

He said: "We have made an excellent investment and Gelpack’s established reputation will enable Visionscape to provide a more comprehensive range of services and solutions to the millions in the markets we operate."

Mark Orton, partner and joint administrator at KPMG, said: “Gelpack’s established name within the packaging industry means it’s a good strategic fit for the new owner and we are pleased to have completed a sale of its business and assets.”