EIGHTEEN jobs have been lost after a Dorset business called in liquidators a year after opening a £1.9million innovation centre.

Draper Ventilation Limited (draperVENT) specialised in ventilation and cooling systems for livestock farming.

Liquidators cited the loss of a major contract as a reason for it ceasing trading.

Draper Ventilation opened an Agri-tech Innovation Centre in July 2021 at Dorset Innovation Park, on Winfrith’s former atomic energy site.

The move was intended to create 20 jobs as well as safeguarding 18, and to increase group-wide turnover to more than £20m, all by 2025.

Julie Palmer and Scott Kippax, partners Begbies Traynor, have been appointed joint liquidators.

Mr Kippax said: “Despite draperVENT securing recent investments, including the move to its new Agri-Tech Innovation Centre headquarters at Dorset Innovation Park in 2021, the loss of a major contract meant the ongoing business was unsustainable.

“The director made the extremely difficult decision to cease trading, which has unfortunately resulted in the redundancy of 18 members of staff.

“We have been working with the director of the business to wind up affairs during what has been a very challenging time for all involved.”

The move to Dorset Innovation Park was made possible by a £750,000 loan from Dorset Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP). The park is one of the enterprise zones introduced by former chancellor George Osborne to offer businesses tax breaks and government support.

A statement of affairs, provided to liquidators by managing director Paul Draper, estimates the company has debts totalling £4m, outstripping its assets by £1.7m.

Trade creditors are owed a total of £1.75m, while other debts include £501,962 to Oxbury Bank and a total of £501,050 to finance company Lombard North Central, as well as £250,398 from a Coronavirus business interruption loan and £740,455 to Dorset LEP. Other companies in the Draper Group are owed a total of £656,168.

DraperVENT bought and developed its 1,720sqm facility at Winfrith within a year. It said the site would host research and innovation in automated livestock farming systems to achieve higher levels of animal welfare and sustainability.