The Morning Brief · 1 November 2026
Migatronic
In the last week of October 2026, the welding-machine maker in Fjerritslev asked to be declared bankrupt. About 165 people at its headquarters were sent home. Its owners, its bank and EIFO had lined up money meant to last until spring 2027. So how does money planned for spring run out in October?
Welding machines from North Jutland.
Migatronic designs and builds welding machines and automated welding systems in Fjerritslev and Aabybro, in North Jutland. It was founded in 1970 and is owned by Peter Roed and his family. Its subsidiaries sell its machines in Germany, the United Kingdom, India and other countries.
A plan to do less.
In November 2025 a new chief executive took over a company that had lost money for three years. His plan was short.
- Sell more, spend less, and stop spreading the company across too many projectsHans-Henrik Jensen, chief executive, to Nordjyske, 2026Bankrupt before the plan could work
- Financing from the bank, EIFO and the owner family to give the company room until spring 2027As reported by Nordjyske from the 2025 annual reportRan out in October 2026
- A sale of the business within two to three weeksChristian Jul Madsen, the court-appointed trustee, 28 Oct 2026Sale process under way
One minute read. Four to go.
The Power Test · Question 24 of 25
Are you running a project this year that you could not afford to finish if it went wrong?
This question is about your company, not Migatronic.
Your answer stays on this screen. The advice opens free when you join the Morning Brief.
- In your company
- The sign: the company runs more custom projects each year, and several end over budget. The check: list each open project with the cash it still needs. The move: stop the worst one this month, before the next one starts.
- In your investments
- The sign: losses for three years, and an auditor’s warning about whether the company can carry on. The check: read how long the new funding is meant to last, and what it assumes. The move: ask what happens if the losses on open projects come in higher.
- In your career
- The sign: you are asked to win one more complex project when the last three lost money. The check: write down what it costs if this one goes the same way. The move: say so before it is signed. If you backed one that drained the company, own it and bring a plan to finish or stop it.
— Max Noble
Take the short test, 2 minutes →The full chapter is in the book →
What the room knows about Migatronic
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- Three years of losses, in one chart
- The projects that cost more than they paid
- Three moves I would make in the trustee’s chair
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Four machines, then the world.
In 1970 the company put its first welding machine into service, a machine for repairing old cars.
It made four machines in its first year, the company’s own history says.
By 1976 it built 6,000 a year with 60 people. In 1984 it joined the stock exchange.
Peter Roed led it for 42 years, until 2012.
By 2015 it built 18,000 welding machines a year and had delivered more than 2,000 automated welding systems.
Then the numbers turned.
Over the last three years before the bankruptcy, Migatronic lost almost 49 million kroner in all, Nordjyske reports.
In 2025 alone it lost 26.5 million kroner after tax.
Its rivals spend up to ten times as much on development, Nordjyske reported. A small company cannot win that race by saving.
Profit or loss after tax, DKK million
The projects that cost more than they paid.
Two things hurt at once, the 2025 annual report showed: demand fell, and several complex customer projects lost money.
A complex project is a machine built for one customer’s line. It earns well when the drawings are right. When they are not, the maker pays for the difference.
In parts of 2026 the company could not pay all its bills on time, the annual report said.
Its auditor warned of material uncertainty about whether it could carry on.
The plan was to do fewer things. The money ran out first.
In November 2025 Hans-Henrik Jensen became chief executive. His plan was to sell more, spend less and back fewer projects.
Few things to focus on are much better than too many, he told Nordjyske.
The bank, EIFO and the owner family arranged money meant to last until spring 2027.
It did not last that long. In the last week of October 2026, Migatronic itself asked the court in Hjørring to declare it bankrupt, because it no longer had the cash to keep going.
The trustee, Christian Jul Madsen of Kromann Reumert, has started a sale. He expects clarity within two to three weeks, and says a search for buyers and investors had begun before the bankruptcy.
The foreign subsidiaries keep running.
From four machines to the court
The right plan, a year late.
My call: Migatronic’s last plan was right, and it came about a year too late. Doing fewer things saves money only once the projects already started are finished or stopped. By then the money planned for spring had gone. A buyer now gets a known name and a trained workforce, without the projects that drained it.
Three moves, in the trustee’s chair.
Sell it whole, with the people.
The value is in the designs, the service network and the people who know them. I would keep the team that can restart production together, so a buyer can switch the lights back on.
Keep the service promise alive.
Welding machines run for years and need parts. If the subsidiaries keep serving existing customers, the name keeps its worth for whoever buys it.
Tell every employee what they are owed.
Unpaid wages in a Danish bankruptcy can be claimed from the state wage guarantee fund, Lønmodtagernes Garantifond. I would make sure each person knows how, and by when.
Cut the Projects Before the Cash Cuts Them
North Jutland, 1970. A small company builds a welding machine for mending old cars. In its first year it makes four. Within six years it builds 6,000 a year. Then comes the catch. In 2025 demand fell, and several complex customer projects lost money. Over three years the losses came to almost 49 million kroner. In November 2025 a new chief executive arrived with a plan to sell more, spend less and back fewer projects. Money was lined up to last until spring 2027. It lasted until October 2026. The machines held together; the budget did not. A plan to do less needs money to finish what is already started. Cut the projects before the cash cuts them.
— Max Noble
Migatronic’s new plan was to back fewer projects; the money ran out before the plan could work.
From the book in preparationThe 52 Laws of Business Power · the 2027 edition, out 31 OctoberRead every law so far →
The Power Test · Question 24 of 25
Are you running a project this year that you could not afford to finish if it went wrong?
This question is about your company, not Migatronic.
- In your company
- The sign: the company runs more custom projects each year, and several end over budget. The check: list each open project with the cash it still needs. The move: stop the worst one this month, before the next one starts.
- In your investments
- The sign: losses for three years, and an auditor’s warning about whether the company can carry on. The check: read how long the new funding is meant to last, and what it assumes. The move: ask what happens if the losses on open projects come in higher.
- In your career
- The sign: you are asked to win one more complex project when the last three lost money. The check: write down what it costs if this one goes the same way. The move: say so before it is signed. If you backed one that drained the company, own it and bring a plan to finish or stop it.
— Max Noble
Take the short test, 2 minutes →The full chapter is in the book →
Migatronic, the Danish welding-machine maker, was declared bankrupt in October 2026, and its trustee hopes to sell it within weeks.
You have read Migatronic. Now make the board’s call.
Compete in The CEO GameEvery number traceable.
- Nordjyske (Peter Simonsen, Frederikke Træholt), 28 Oct 2026, updated 29 Oct: company filed itself; about 165 staff sent home; losses just under DKK 49m over three years; 2025 loss DKK 26.5m after tax; falling demand and complex customer projects; bills paid late in 2026; auditor’s material uncertainty; funding from bank, EIFO and family to spring 2027; owned by Peter Roed and family; founded 1970; foreign subsidiaries continue; trustee expects clarity in two to three weeks · nordjyske.dk
- Metal Supply (Eskil Mann Sørensen), 29 Oct 2026: declared bankrupt at the court in Hjørring on Tuesday; trustee Christian Jul Madsen has started a sale; 14 staff keep the company running · metal-supply.dk
- TV2 Nord, 28 Oct 2026: both units bankrupt for lack of cash; trustee of Kromann Reumert; production paused; a search for buyers or investors before the bankruptcy; 2025 pre-tax loss just under DKK 33m · tv2nord.dk
- Nordjyske, 29 Oct 2026: Hans-Henrik Jensen’s plan to sell more, spend less and stop spreading resources across too many projects · nordjyske.dk
- Nordjyske (Frederik Marcus Overgaard): chief executive since November 2025; rivals’ development budgets up to ten times larger · nordjyske.dk
- Migatronic, “The history of Migatronic”: first machine 1970 for repairing old cars; four machines in the first year; 6,000 a year in 1976; listed 1984; Peter Roed CEO for 42 years to 2012; 18,000 machines a year by 2015 · migatronic.com
- Limfjord Update, 29 Oct 2026: about 170 staff in Denmark and about as many abroad; sent home but not yet dismissed · limfjordupdate.dk
- Lønmodtagernes Garantifond: the state fund that covers wage claims in bankruptcy · lg.dk
Outlets give the founding year as 1970 (Nordjyske, the company) or 1971 (TV2 Nord), and Danish staff as about 165 or about 170. The losses are as reported by Nordjyske from the annual reports; the accounts themselves were not opened. The verdict, the three moves and the law are Max Noble’s analysis. Not investment advice.
Cut the Projects Before the Cash Cuts Them
The same mistake, in your own world. Free, from the book.
- In your company
- The sign: the company runs more custom projects each year, and several end over budget. The check: list each open project with the cash it still needs. The move: stop the worst one this month, before the next one starts.
- In your investments
- The sign: losses for three years, and an auditor’s warning about whether the company can carry on. The check: read how long the new funding is meant to last, and what it assumes. The move: ask what happens if the losses on open projects come in higher.
- In your career
- The sign: you are asked to win one more complex project when the last three lost money. The check: write down what it costs if this one goes the same way. The move: say so before it is signed. If you backed one that drained the company, own it and bring a plan to finish or stop it.