CARLSAN SURVEYS LTD.

💤Zombieactive

SC198763 · ltd · incorporated 1999-08-09

Investment thesis

Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.

Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.

Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.

Why now

Window steady · low confidence

Steady and stalled — no momentum either way. Needs an approach trigger.

What changed my view

Last 30 days

No material changes in the last 30 days.

Last 90 days

No snapshot from 90 days ago — start tracking from today.

Last 180 days

No snapshot from 180 days ago — start tracking from today.

🔒Estimated value

—

Upgrade to see

Turnover

—

year to Aug 2024

Net worth

£81.5k

book net assets

Opportunity

80/100

Exceptional

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What this business does

Primary activity: Engineering related scientific and technical consulting activities

Sector: Professional, scientific & technical

Investor take

Pursue

Asset-holding vehicle with a 62-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 62). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (76/100)

Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.

Company profile

address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date

100

Financials

2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed

Lenders & charges

Confirmed no charges registered

Directors & officers

8 officers (1 active, 8 linked, 3 with DOB)

Ownership & PSC

1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared

Director network

Network not yet resolved

Filing history

68 filings on record

Gazette notices

No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)

Opportunity Score

80/100Exceptional

PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional

Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.

Business quality

Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.

Acquirability

Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.

Risk profile

Few red flags.

Signal strength

Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declared

Positive net assets

Net assets £81,492

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts

Cash

—

Net Worth

£81k

↑ 3.1% YoY

Current Assets

£86k

↓ 7.3% YoY

Current Liabilities

—

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown

Metric	2024-08-31	2023-08-31
Total assets	£81.5k	£79.0k
Current assets	£86.0k	£92.8k
Net assets	£81.5k	£79.0k

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

1 signal detected in this company's narrative notes — going-concern language, audit opinion, contingent liabilities, related-party transactions.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Recent activity

Last 30 days

filings

Last 90 days

filings

Last 180 days

filings

Counts from Companies House filing history.

Corporate timeline (30 events)Click to expand

2025-05-22
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-05-23
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accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-12-05
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accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-03-16
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-03-01
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-12-14
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-02-09
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2017-11-21
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2017-02-27
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2016-03-01
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2015-08-20
📄
annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
annual-return · AR01
2015-05-22
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2014-09-25
📄
annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
annual-return · AR01
2014-05-12
📄
termination-director-company-with-name
officers · TM01
2013-09-30
➖
GILES, Brian Leonard Alfred resigned
director
2013-09-30
➖
GILES, Wesley Dean resigned
director
2012-07-19
➖
GILES, Sandra resigned
secretary
2012-07-19
➕
GILES, Brian Leonard Alfred appointed
director
2012-07-19
➕
GILES, Wesley Dean appointed
director
2004-09-30
➖
COBRA ENTERPRISES LIMITED resigned
corporate-secretary
2003-10-01
➕
GILES, Sandra appointed
secretary
2000-05-15
➖
LAWSON, Sandra Louise resigned
secretary
2000-05-15
➕
COBRA ENTERPRISES LIMITED appointed
corporate-secretary
1999-08-09
🏢
Company incorporated
As CARLSAN SURVEYS LTD.
1999-08-09
➕
GILES, Carl Brian appointed
director
1999-08-09
➕
LAWSON, Sandra Louise appointed
secretary
1999-08-09
➕
FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD appointed
corporate-nominee-secretary
1999-08-09
➖
FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD resigned
corporate-nominee-secretary
1999-08-09
➕
FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD appointed
corporate-nominee-director
1999-08-09
➖
FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD resigned
corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

93/100

Critical — business is the founder

The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.

FACTORS

+Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
+Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 27 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
+Senior director age: Director aged approximately 62 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

85/100

Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS

secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 62. Early succession window.
primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 27 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 27 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.

Red flags

clean

No red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%

Name	Shares	Voting rights	Nature of control	Notified
Mr Carl Brian Giles Individual · British · DOB 06/1964 · age 62	75–100%	—	75-100% shares	09/08/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

Similar companies

Active · Professional services · KY postcode area

Company	Est. value	Turnover	Net worth	Staff	Age	Opp	Director
INCHCOLM VETERINARY SERVICES LIMITED→ SC249559 · est 2003	£342.9k £252.6k–£433.1k	—	—	8	23y	81	69y
ANCER RECRUITMENT LTD.→ SC205893 · est 2000	—	—	—	5200	26y	83	62y
FERSA LTD→ SC219538 · est 2001	—	—	—	4	25y	83	63y
FLORIDRON LIMITED→ SC132297 · est 1991	—	—	£747.5k	—	34y	83	69y
LAURENCE GOULD PARTNERSHIP LIMITED→ SC124767 · est 1990 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	36y	83	72y
PHOTOSYNERGY LIMITED→ SC220986 · est 2001 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	24y	83	58y
AVENUE SCOTLAND LIMITED→ SC147452 · est 1993	—	—	£87.8k	—	32y	82	73y
BALGAY FARMING COMPANY LIMITED→ SC093170 · est 1985	—	—	—	200	41y	82	79y
CAIRNSMILL LIMITED→ SC144163 · est 1993 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	33y	82	74y
CDLH LIMITED→ SC379307 · est 2010	—	—	—	100	15y	82	67y
DRYBURGH ASSOCIATES LIMITED→ SC367732 · est 2009	—	—	—	900	16y	82	68y
FASTTRAC DESIGN LIMITED→ SC297992 · est 2006	—	—	£4.3k	—	20y	82	65y

Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →

🔒Tailored diligence questions

7 specific questions generated from this company's actual signals — liquidity, leverage, director age, charge count, red flags, age-of-company.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

🔒Advanced scoring suite

Exit-route ranking, improvement thesis, quiet-distress detector, covenant-pressure proxy, extraction monitor, approaching triggers, ownership drift, local cluster, value trap, debt capacity, archetype classification — 48+ scoring modules.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Company details

Statusactive

Typeltd

Incorporated1999-08-09

Jurisdictionscotland

Primary SIC71122 — Engineering related scientific and technical consulting activities

Registered office

64 North Street

Kettlebridge

Cupar

Fife

KY15 7QJ

Filing status

Accounts

Next due: 2026-05-31

Last made up to: 2024-08-31

Confirmation statement

Next due: 2026-08-28

Last: 2025-08-14

Officers (1 active · 7 resigned)

GILES, Carl Brian→

director · ~62y · appointed 1999-08-09

View their other companies + combined net worth →

Active

GILES, Sandra→

secretary · appointed 2003-10-01 · resigned 2012-07-19

Resigned

LAWSON, Sandra Louise→

secretary · appointed 1999-08-09 · resigned 2000-05-15

Resigned

COBRA ENTERPRISES LIMITED→

corporate-secretary · appointed 2000-05-15 · resigned 2004-09-30

Resigned

FORM 10 SECRETARIES FD LTD→

corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 1999-08-09 · resigned 1999-08-09

Resigned

GILES, Brian Leonard Alfred→

director · ~84y · appointed 2012-07-19 · resigned 2013-09-30

Resigned

GILES, Wesley Dean→

director · ~49y · appointed 2012-07-19 · resigned 2013-09-30

Resigned

FORM 10 DIRECTORS FD LTD→

corporate-nominee-director · appointed 1999-08-09 · resigned 1999-08-09

Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.