Carlex Glass America Acquires Zeledyne Plant, Auto Glass Aftermarket Distribution Business

NASHVILLE, Tenn.--Carlex Glass America has completed the acquisition from Zeledyne of a float glass manufacturing and automotive windshield fabricating plant in Nashville and an automotive replacement glass distribution business in Lebanon, Tenn. Financial terms were not disclosed.

“Adding the Nashville facility and the automotive replacement glass distribution operations to Carlex's business expands our market and customer base and enhances our customer service, while affording strategic synergies with our established Tennessee operations”

The acquired operations join Carlex Glass Co., which produces automotive glass for original-equipment and replacement applications in Vonore, Tenn., as subsidiaries of Central Glass Co. Ltd., based in Japan. Carlex Glass America and Carlex Glass Co. will be known in the market as Carlex.

The purchase significantly expands Carlex's automotive glass business, especially the aftermarket sector, and adds ability to manufacture automotive-quality flat glass, according to Masami Wakatsuki, Carlex Glass America president.

"Adding the Nashville facility and the automotive replacement glass distribution operations to Carlex's business expands our market and customer base and enhances our customer service, while affording strategic synergies with our established Tennessee operations," Wakatsuki said.

With the acquisition, Carlex becomes the sole U.S. distributor of Carlite brand automotive replacement glass.

The combined Carlex operations in Tennessee have more than 1,000 employees, including some former Zeledyne administrative and executive management employees from Allen Park, Mich., who are relocating to Nashville and Lebanon, according to Wakatsuki. He said Carlex plans to maintain an automotive technical center in the Detroit area.

Wakatsuki said that Carlex and Local 737 of the United Auto Workers union have ratified a largely unchanged collective bargaining agreement representing workers at the Nashville and Lebanon sites. UAW Local 2314 represents Carlex workers in Vonore.

About Central Glass

Founded as Ube Soda Industry Co. Ltd. in 1936 in Ube City, Japan, the company began operations as a manufacturer of soda ash and caustic soda. In 1958, Central Glass Co. Ltd. was established as a wholly owned subsidiary to manufacture sheet glass. The company absorbed the subsidiary in 1963 and assumed the Central Glass name. Carlex Glass Co. was established as a joint venture with Ford Motor Co. and later became solely owned by Central Glass. Central Glass operations today are focused in glass and chemicals with more than 40 locations primarily in Japan, the United States, Great Britain, Germany, China, Vietnam and Taiwan. Sales in 2010 were nearly $1.6 billion. Central Glass shares are traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and Osaka Securities Exchange. For more information, visit CGC Japan and Carlex .

Carlite is a registered trademark of Ford Motor Co.