Interserve Group Ltd is a multinational group of support services and construction companies based in the UK, with a revenue of £2.7 billion in 2018 and a workforce of 68,000 people worldwide. The group has its headquarters in Reading, Berkshire.
The company was founded in 1884 as the London and Tilbury Lighterage Company Limited, and retained the Tilbury name until 2001. From 1991 it was known as Tilbury Douglas following a merger with RM Douglas, but in 2001 rebranded as Interserve plc. The name change partly reflected a shift in focus during the 1990s towards maintenance and facilities management services sectors, and this continued in the 2000s, buoyed by further acquisitions.
However, financial issues including problem contracts in Interserve’s energy-from-waste business led to profit warnings in 2017. The company was forced to restructure and refinance in March 2018. Its financial situation worsened in late 2018, and debt holders started discussing a further financial restructuring of the business. The debt-for-equity plan was rejected at an annual general meeting on 15 March 2019, and Interserve plc went into administration owing creditors over £100m. In a pre-pack deal, the rest of the group was immediately sold to a newly incorporated company owned by lenders, Interserve Group Ltd, with a break-up of the company expected in 2020. The sale of Interserve’s facilities management business to Mitie was announced in June 2020.
Type: Limited company
Industry:
Infrastructure – professional services,
construction services,
support services,
construction equipment hire and sale
Predecessor: Interserve plc; Tilbury Douglas plc; Tilbury Group plc; R M Douglas Holdings
Founded: 1884
Headquarters: Reading, Berkshire, United Kingdom
Products: Formwork Systems, Joinery products
Website: www.interserve.com