Testing, inspection and certification firms to acquire in the North West

Name: Testing, inspection and certification firms to acquire in the North West
Creator: Firmbase
License: https://firmbase.co/terms

Updated 9 November 2026

Looking to acquire a testing, inspection or certification firm in the North West? Firmbase ranks 94 testing, inspection and certification firms using public company information to help buyers prioritise firms for research and potential outreach. The Approach Score ranks firms using public signals including director age and tenure, ownership, business scale, financial strength and recent changes. These firms are not listed for sale, and the ranking does not indicate that an owner is considering a sale.

The median firm has 9 staff and has been in business for 19 years; 11 firms are owned by groups that have acquired several firms in this sector. Looking beyond the North West? Explore the full UK list of testing, inspection and certification firms.

Firms

UK 751

43%

Every director 55+

UK 28%

30%

Held 75%+ by one person

UK 23%

Median years in business

UK 16

Median headcount

UK 10

£500k to £1m

Median turnover band

UK £500k to £1m · includes our estimates

11 firms owned by 1 group that has bought several firms in this sector. That is 12% of this list, against 1% across the UK.

Towns with the most firms

Manchester 32 firms
Liverpool 15 firms

The first 25 firms, in Approach Score order

Rank	Firm	Approach Score	The facts behind the score
1	Retrofit Solutions Warrington, Cheshire	Approach Score 91/100	1 director aged 65-69, 1 aged 55-59 · longest in post since 2001 1 individual holds 75%+ · held via a trust or firm · independent More about this firm 5 staff · turnover est. £415k Net assets £74k (Jul 2025) Director resigned Mar 2025 Company no. 04121692 · Companies House retrofitsolutions.ltd
2	Reliability Maintenance Solutions Warrington, Cheshire	Approach Score 83/100	1 director aged 60-64, 1 aged 50-54 · longest in post since 1999 2 individuals hold 75%+ · independent More about this firm 5 staff · turnover est. £1.7m Net assets £1.9m (Jul 2025) Company no. 03808313 · Companies House
3	Global Surveys Hyde	Approach Score 80/100	1 director aged 65-69, 1 aged 45-49 · longest in post since 2011 2 individuals hold 50%+ · independent More about this firm 17 staff · turnover est. £896k Net assets £438k (Mar 2025) Company no. 07720856 · Companies House globalsurveys.com
4	Precise Calibration Wigan A director sits on 4 or more companies	Approach Score 79/100	Director aged 55-59 · in post since 2003 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 10 staff · turnover est. £383k Net assets £138k (Jun 2025) Company no. 04775471 · Companies House precisecalibration.co.uk
5	Asbestos Assessment and Control Bury, Lancashire	Approach Score 79/100	Director aged 65-69 · in post since 2005 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 5 staff · turnover est. £371k Net assets £100k (Feb 2025) Company no. 04504759 · Companies House asbestosassessment.com
6	Cobalt NDT ST Helens, Merseyside	Approach Score 78/100	Director aged 60-64 · in post since 2002 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 7 staff · turnover est. £267k Net assets £160k (Nov 2025) Company no. 04534894 · Companies House cobaltndt.co.uk
7	Environoise Wirral	Approach Score 78/100	2 directors aged 70 or over, 2 aged 50-54 · longest in post since 2009 2 individuals hold 50%+ · independent More about this firm 8 staff · turnover est. £299k Net assets £66k (Sep 2024) PSC register changed Oct 2025 Company no. 07009576 · Companies House environoise.co.uk
8	ACE Southport, Merseyside	Approach Score 78/100	1 director aged 65-69, 2 aged 60-64, 1 aged 55-59 · longest in post since 1997 2 individuals hold 50%+ · independent More about this firm 37 staff · turnover est. £2.1m Net assets £1.2m (Jun 2025) Company no. 03331462 · Companies House ace-uk.website
9	Lancashire Testing Services Bolton, Lancashire A director sits on 4 or more companies	Approach Score 77/100	3 directors aged 65-69 · longest in post since 2015 Independent More about this firm 8 staff · turnover est. £326k Net assets £187k (Dec 2025) Company no. 09921520 · Companies House ltslab.co.uk
10	SPL Fire Safety Ashton-Under-Lyne	Approach Score 77/100	Director aged 55-59 · in post since 2017 1 individual holds 75%+ · held via a trust or firm · independent More about this firm 9 staff · turnover est. £1m Net assets £1.2m (Mar 2025) PSC register changed Dec 2025 Company no. 07977725 · Companies House splfiresafety.co.uk
11	Vacuum Precision Resources Macclesfield, Cheshire	Approach Score 77/100	We hold older figures than Companies House 1 director aged 65-69, 1 aged 60-64 · longest in post since 1999 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 9 staff · turnover est. £485k Net assets £110k (Nov 2020) · newer accounts made up to Nov 2024 Company no. 03881771 · Companies House
12	HT PAT Testing Chadderton, Oldham	Approach Score 74/100	Director aged 60-64 · in post since 2019 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 5 staff · turnover est. £153k Net assets £60k (Mar 2026) Company no. 11902414 · Companies House
13	Compliance Education Liverpool	Approach Score 74/100	Director aged 55-59 · in post since 2015 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 18 staff · turnover est. £930k Net assets £653k (Jan 2026) Company no. 09679056 · Companies House complianceeducation.co.uk
14	Invek Surveys Warrington, Cheshire	Approach Score 74/100	We hold older figures than Companies House Director aged 60-64 · in post since 1993 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 6 staff · turnover est. £349k Net assets £173k · newer accounts made up to Apr 2025 Company no. 02819149 · Companies House invek.com
15	Lynx Energy and Carbon Assessors Burnley, Lancashire A director sits on 4 or more companies	Approach Score 73/100	1 director aged 55-59, 1 aged 50-54 · longest in post since 2022 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 5 staff · turnover est. £202k Net assets £56k (Sep 2025) Director resigned Oct 2025 Company no. 14367830 · Companies House lynxenergyandcarbon.co.uk
16	Redline Safety Warrington, Cheshire	Approach Score 72/100	1 director aged 65-69, 1 aged 50-54 · longest in post since 2020 2 individuals hold 50%+ · independent More about this firm 6 staff · turnover est. £445k Net assets £169k (Oct 2025) Company no. 12964451 · Companies House redlinesafety.co.uk
17	Manchester Metrology Ashton-Under-Lyne	Approach Score 72/100	Director aged 55-59 · in post since 2023 1 individual holds 75%+ · corporate owner More about this firm 5 staff · turnover est. £523k Net assets £33k (Apr 2025) Company no. 14801749 · Companies House manchester-metrology.co.uk
18	LK Group Radcliffe, Manchester A director sits on 4 or more companies	Approach Score 71/100	1 director aged 70 or over, 2 aged 45-49 · longest in post since 2007 Corporate owner More about this firm 6 staff · turnover est. £2.4m Net assets £1.3m (Sep 2025) Company no. 06121294 · Companies House thelkgroup.com
19	SOL Acoustics Gadbrook Park	Approach Score 70/100	Director aged 55-59 · in post since 2001 Independent More about this firm 13 staff · turnover est. £833k Net assets £589k (Jul 2025) Company no. 04218702 · Companies House solacoustics.co.uk
20	L & F Solutions Warrington, Cheshire	Approach Score 70/100	We hold older figures than Companies House 1 director aged 60-64, 1 aged 50-54 · longest in post since 2006 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 5 staff · turnover est. £373k Net assets £34k · newer accounts made up to May 2025 Company no. 05711282 · Companies House lfsolutions.co.uk
21	Inspec Greater Manchester	Approach Score 70/100	We hold older figures than Companies House 1 director aged 70 or over, 1 aged 55-59 · longest in post since 2002 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 47 staff · turnover est. £3.8m Net assets £610k · newer accounts made up to Dec 2025 Company no. 02218329 · Companies House inspec-international.com
22	IFS Laboratories Manchester A director sits on 4 or more companies	Approach Score 69/100	1 director aged 55-59, 1 aged 50-54 · longest in post since 2003 2 individuals hold 50%+ · held via a trust or firm · independent More about this firm 11 staff · turnover est. £512k Net assets £1k (Jun 2025) Director resigned Oct 2026 · charge satisfied Oct 2026 · PSC register changed Jun 2025 Company no. 04802600 · Companies House ifs-labs.com
23	Offset Services Birchwood Warrington, Cheshire	Approach Score 69/100	Director aged 55-59 · in post since 1999 1 individual holds 75%+ · independent More about this firm 5 staff · turnover est. £215k Net assets £208k (Mar 2025) Company no. 01670487 · Companies House offsetservices.co.uk
24	Pmar Crewe	Approach Score 69/100	1 director aged 60-64, 1 aged 55-59 · longest in post since 2010 2 individuals hold 50%+ · independent More about this firm 6 staff · turnover est. £327k Net assets £61k (Dec 2025) Company no. 07459453 · Companies House pmar.co.uk
25	Evolve Property Services Consultancy Delph	Approach Score 68/100	We hold older figures than Companies House Director aged 60-64 · in post since 2005 2 individuals hold 75%+ · independent More about this firm 5 staff · turnover est. £200k Net assets £36k (Dec 2020) · newer accounts made up to Dec 2025 Company no. 05633488 · Companies House

69 more firms are in the list, in Approach Score order.

You're seeing the first 25. Buy all 94 for £799 + VAT, with the facts behind each score, director names, shareholders and financials.

Buy the list of all 94 firms, with director names, ages and shareholders

Each row comes with the facts behind its score, financials with dates and contact details.

What's in the file

One row per firm, in Approach Score order, as Excel + CSV.

It holds the facts behind each score, points for each part of the score, financials with dates, publicly available contact details, where identified, director names and named shareholders.

Some people with significant control appear as Other individual, with no further detail. Director email lookups are not included.

How this list is filtered

5 or more staff, from filed headcount or our estimate where none is filed.
Registered office in the North West.

See every filter on the UK list

How this list is built

The Approach Score ranks firms mainly on public Companies House information about owner tenure and age, ownership, size, financial strength and recent register changes.

Firms with higher scores appear first in each list.

Use the ranking to order research, then check each business directly.

Read how the Approach Score works

What it does not mean

No firm here is for sale, and the score says nothing about any owner's plans.

At least 95% of the firms where we hold directors had them checked in or after November 2026.

What we do not cover

Regulatory information is not included in this list. Buyers should check the relevant register as part of their due diligence. Check UKAS accreditation through its accredited bodies directory and read the accreditation schedule. Accreditation covers a defined scope of work, rather than every service a firm offers.

Why age bands but no people's names

Age bands come from the month and year of birth on Companies House. This page shows no exact ages and no people's names. Both come with the purchased list. The band edges from 45 to 65 are the ages where the score changes. A row shows no age bands when a director's surname is in the firm's name, its group's name or its website. Those directors' ages still count towards the score.

Is this your firm?

You can ask us to take it off every acquisition page, and out of every list we sell after that. Give us your name and work email, and we send you a link to confirm. If your email address is on the firm's own website domain, the firm comes off once you confirm. If it is not, a person reviews your request first. A list already sold stays with its buyer.

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The standard Firmbase list

TIC Companies in the UK