Camatic Seating: Decades-old Aussie company collapses putting all staff out of work and owing $29million

An Aussie company that made seats for major sporting stadiums around the world has collapsed while still owing tens of millions of dollars. 

Camatic Pty Ltd which operates out of Australia with sites in the US and Malaysia entered voluntary administration in April.

The 60-year-old Australian company owed $29.4m by the time Jason Stone and Glenn Franklin from insolvency firm PFK were appointed to oversee it.

Approximately 77 employees and ‘numerous’ staff were immediately stood down or laid off and 123 projects were left in limbo.

Camatic, which traded as Camatic Seating, made and installed seats in stadiums, arenas, cinemas, theatres, educational institutions and transit areas globally. 

Camatic had been specialising in seats for more than 60 years and had been operating in Australia, Malaysia and the US 

Administrators requested employees be stood down without pay from 10 April to 3 May, according to an internal letter obtained by news.com.au.

‘The reason for the stand down is that the majority of the company’s operations have been put on hold for the time being resulting in stoppage of work where certain employees [including yourself] can no longer be usefully employed,’ the letter read.

Mr Franklin recommended the company be placed into liquidation and a meeting for creditors has been scheduled for May 10. 

If Camatic enters liquidation all employees will permanently lose their jobs.

Unpaid wages accounted for $3.6m of what is owed to employees which includes their pay, superannuation, annual leave, long service leave and redundancy pay.

Outstanding amounts owed to unsecured creditors accounted for $14.9m, the administrators report stated.  

Camatic’s biggest creditor is HSBC which is owed $11.2m for loans and credit cards, a mortgage and bank overdraft.

The ATO lodged a debt notice for $250,000 and the State Revenue Office of Victoria notified administrators that they were owed $331,000.

Claims have also been filed towards the company’s manufacturing plant ranging between $748 and $114,000 for steel pallets, plastic beads, a printer and fibreboard.

Mr Franklin blamed the Covid-19 lockdowns for Camatic’s failure, especially as an international business. 

What also did not help was the fact the Camatic opened a new manufacturing plant in Malaysia during the Covid period. 

Because of lockdowns management was unable to travel and supervise the set up which added to the company’s decline, Mr Franklin added. 

Administrators noted that Camatic’s owners recently tried selling the company and had received two offers but that negotiations had been ongoing. 

Administrators expect the company to be put into liquidation and have called a meeting for creditors for May 10. 

Camatic made and installed seats in stadiums, arenas, cinemas, theatres, educational institutions and transit areas globally

Camatic is run out of Melbourne which is also where it also operates its US branch, Camatic US. 

The manufacturing plant built in Malaysia serviced regions in the US where the company boasted having serviced ‘some of the biggest stadiums and arenas’, and in Australia where they provided seating for the Australian Open tennis tournament.

In a recent Instagram post the company celebrated supplying seats to the Australian Open for 20 years in Rod Laver Arena, Margaret Court Arena and John Cain Arena.

Camatic also supplied more than 5,000 Quantum seats for the Kia Arena, ‘all of which were manufactured and assembled less than half an hour’s drive away from the venue at our Melbourne facility’, the company said in a social media post.

It had also supplied more than 42,000 Axiom seats at the Sydney Football Stadium which opened in mid-2022.

In the US Camatic worked with the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, SoFi Stadium and the Climate Pledge Arena.

Credit reporting agency CreditorWatch reported that the amount of external administrators being appointed to Australian businesses is hitting an all-time high.

The rate is 22.1 per cent higher than it was at this point last year.

Last month national roof manufacturer Lutum collapsed owing $20m and this month Victorian-based Highline Caravans collapsed owing more than $1 million.