Merseyside brake disc maker on brink of collapse

Stricken carbon fibre brake disc manufacturer Surface Transforms (ST) is now on the brink of administration following the loss of its biggest customer.

In a statement to the stock exchange on Thursday, the Knowsley-based business said it will suspend trading in its shares and has filed a Notice of Intention to appoint Administrators. Redundancies among its 170-strong workforce are now likely.

On March 3, ST said it had lost a contract with global automotive giant General Motors (GM). In 2025 GM accounted for £15.3m in sales – 84% of ST’s revenues and 85% of all its brake discs but said it would source its brake discs elsewhere from March 31.

ST believed it had a contract with the US carmaker until 2030 and had received operational support and financial assistance including advance payments of £14.4m.

This devastating blow for ST also brings into question the repayment of a £13.2m ERDF loan from Liverpool City Region Combined Authority which it has already drawn down. It also owes around £400,000 from an earlier £1m Combined Authority loan.

Before last week’s announcement, ST’s shares on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) were trading at around £2 before plummeting as low as 0.09p. Before the suspension notice on Wednesday they were trading at around 0.10p.

It manufactures carbon fibre reinforced ceramic automotive brake discs for high performance cars. Customers of the business include, or have included, Porsche, Ferrari, Jaguar Land Rover and Aston Martin.

In the last two years ST had struggled with the challenges of ramping up production and had burned through significant volumes of cash. However, as of the beginning this year it was showing signs of having put those struggles behind it.

In its latest statement to AIM it said it has appointed Alvarez and Marsal (A&M) as corporate restructuring advisers and the board is working closely with them to understand the options available.

It has also initiated a cost rationalisation exercise as a consequence of the reduced production volumes. This will include starting a consultation with employees in respect of potential redundancies and layoffs.

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It added: “The board has taken the decision to file a notice of intention to appoint A&M as administrators with the High Court. Once the NOIA is filed, the company will be protected against any creditor enforcement action for a period of 10 working days and will continue to work with A&M on the options available to the Company.

“Due to the circumstances outlined above, the company has requested that its shares are suspended from trading on AIM with effect from 12.35 pm on March 12, pending clarification of the company’s financial position.”