Plastech Acquires United Screw & Bolt
20 May 1997
Plastech Acquires United Screw & Bolt
ST. CLAIR SHORES, Mich., May 20 -- Plastech Engineered
Products, Inc. today announced it has completed a $128 million
acquisition of United Screw & Bolt of Cleveland, Ohio, creating the
largest full-service minority supplier that has received both Ford's
"Total Quality Excellence" and Chrysler's "Gold Pentastar" award.
The new venture, Plastech, will offer customers complete interior and
exterior molded components and bumpers. Customers include Ford, General
Motors, Chrysler as well as several large automotive suppliers including
Johnson Controls/Prince Corporation, Lear Corporation and Textron
Automotive. The company has an exceptional quality record and was voted
"Supplier of the Year" by the Michigan Minority Business Development
Council. Furthermore, Plastech's president and CEO Julie Brown was voted
Entrepreneur of the Year in 1994.
United Screw & Bolt's Bryan Custom Plastics Division is a major
supplier of interior hard trim, such as door panels, to Original
Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). Bryan has the largest injection machine
capability (3,000 to 5,000 tons) among component suppliers in the
industry. It was named "Processor of the Year" in 1996 by Plastic News
magazine. In addition to Bryan Custom Plastics, United Screw & Bolt has
four stamping companies and one additional injection molding company.
The merger is expected to provide both companies with significant
strategic growth opportunities. Moreover, sales of the new venture are
projected to exceed $310 million for 1997.
Plastech is looking forward to meeting the challenges and
opportunities afforded by joining forces with such a successful and
growing company. "Bryan is currently Ford's only Total Quality
Excellence Full-service Supplier of interior components," said Julie N.
Brown, President and CEO of Plastech. "Plastech's acquisition of Bryan
will further Plastech's mission of being a leading supplier of
high-quality components while creating significant opportunities for
women and minority communities."
Ford Motor Company played an essential role in bringing the
parties together to negotiate the deal. The auto company's commitment
and assistance has helped Plastech Engineered Products and United Screw &
Bolt jointly achieve a new level of competitiveness in the automotive
component business that would have been unattainable had the companies
remained separate.
Plastech will be the first Ford supplier to take advantage of Ford's
Interest Rate Subvention program to help pay interest on loans associated
with the acquisition of United Screw & Bolt.
In addition, Plastech has received invaluable technical assistance that
was arranged by Ford. Plastech hired Mr. Marshall Yeary, a retired Ford
stamping and bumper employee, to help support its rapid growth in the bumper
business. Ford has since announced a formal program that will pair Ford
retirees with minority companies in need of technical assistance. Mr. Yeary's
input is considered essential to the competitive strength of Plastech's bumper
business.
"This acquisition would not have been possible without the assistance
of Ford Motor Company," noted Mrs. Brown. They are setting new standards
in their commitment to minority supplier development, as outlined in the
message delivered by Carlos Mazzorin, Ford's Vice President of
Purchasing, to the Michigan Minority Business Development Council last
October. In that message, Mr. Mazzorin stated Ford's commitment to
increase minority sourcing to $2.5 billion in the year 2000 (up from the
current $1.8 billion) and to provide financial and business support to
selected minority companies.
SOURCE Plastech Engineered Products, Inc.