A BOLTON carpet manufacturer has gone into receivership - threatening 45 jobs.

The bad news has been broken to workers at Thomson Shepherd Ltd in The Valley, Union Road.

Insolvency specialists at KPMG Corporate Recovery hope to sell the company as a going concern.

Thomson Shepherd, which turned over £4 million in the 11 months ended June 30 this year, manufactures a range of high quality carpets and floor coverings.

The company's origins date back to 1848.

It was acquired from Arthur Sanderson & Sons by a management buy-in team last year.

Joint Receiver Mike Seery, a KPMG partner, said: "There is substantial over-capacity in an intensely competitive market, which has regrettably led to Thomson Shepherd not being able to achieve the turnover it needed.

"The problems facing carpet manufacturers is being replicated in many other manufacturing sectors, at least in part driven by the fall-off in exports leading to excess capacity and increased competitiveness."

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