TriMas Reports Record Sales for First Quarter

Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based TriMas Corp., parent to industry supplier Cequent Performance Products, announced record revenue for its first quarter, ended March 31, as sales rose 13.5% to $337.8 million from $297.6 million in the year-ago period.

During the first quarter, sales increased in five of the six reportable segments, primarily as a result of additional sales from bolt-on acquisitions, market share gains, new product introductions and geographic expansion as compared to first quarter 2012.

Excluding noncontrolling interests, first-quarter net income was $13.2 million, or 33 cents per diluted share, compared to $12.5 million, or 36 cents per diluted share, during first quarter 2012.

“Our record first quarter sales demonstrates our continued ability to successfully execute on our growth strategies,” said President and CEO David Wathen. “In the midst of an uncertain global economic environment, we continue to identify the bright spots where we believe we can capture growth for our businesses through product innovation, market share gains and geographic expansion.

“Looking forward, our full year 2013 view is essentially unchanged from our previous guidance. We remain committed to TriMas’ ability to outperform the economy, with expected 2013 sales growth of 6% to 8%, as compared to 2012.”

Other highlights from the quarter included:

• Reduced interest expense by more than 50% as compared with first quarter 2012, resulting from a reduction in overall interest rates due to the 2012 redemption of the company’s 9 3/4% senior notes and the refinancing of the credit facilities.

• Completed three additional bolt-on acquisitions year-to-date to expand existing product offerings, gain access to new customers and end markets, expand the geographic footprint internationally, and capitalize on scale and cost efficiencies.

• The company reported operating profit of $23.7 million in first quarter. Operating profit and the related margin percentage were impacted by costs related to recent acquisitions including purchase accounting adjustments, higher costs associated with global growth initiatives, new plant and equipment ramp-up costs and higher costs associated with long-term incentive programs, with the majority of these incremental costs included in selling, general and administrative expenses. The company continued to generate significant savings from capital investments, productivity projects and lean initiatives, which contributed to the funding of growth initiatives.

To view the entire report click here.

 

 

TriMas OKs Selling of 1.5 Million Stock Shares

TriMas Corp. announced that Heartland Industrial Associates LLC. has agreed to sell 1.5 million shares of its common stock to Goldman, Sachs & Co. as the sole underwriter in the registered public offering of those shares.

All net proceeds from the sale of the common stock will be received by the selling stockholder. TriMas Corp. will not receive any of the proceeds. The total number of outstanding shares of TriMas Corp.’s common stock will not change as a result of this offering, according to the company.

The shares are being sold by the selling stockholder pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement. Goldman, Sachs & Co. may offer the shares of common stock from time to time for sale in one or more transactions on the NASDAQ Global Market, in the over-the-counter market, through negotiated transactions or otherwise at market prices prevailing at the time of sale, at prices related to prevailing market prices or at negotiated prices, states a press release from TriMas.

 

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TriMas Swings to 4Q Net Loss on Higher Sales

TriMas Corp., parent to Cequent Performance Products, incurred a loss for the fourth quarter versus a profit last year, in spite of a revenue rise.

RTT News reported that the firm suffered from increased expenses for the quarter which upset the rise in revenue, further exacerbated by debt extinguishment costs which led it to post a loss for the period.

For the quarter, the firm posted a net loss of $13.94 million compared with a profit of $13.25 million last year. On a per share basis, the firm posted loss of $0.35 versus a profit of $0.38 last year.

Excluding special items related to business restructuring costs, debt extinguishment costs and tax restructuring, the company reported income from continuing operations of $0.33 per share.

Net sales for the period rose to $301.04 million from $259.65 million last year, which the company attributed to additional sales from bolt-on acquisitions, market share gains, new product introductions and geographic expansion as compared to fourth quarter 2011. Analysts were looking for revenue of $291.23 million for the quarter.

The firm suffered from debt extinguishment costs of $40.25 million for the three-months versus none last year.

Looking forward, for the full-year, the firm sees earnings per share from continuing operations to be between $2.15 and $2.25, excluding any future events that may be considered special items and revenue to rise between 6% and 8% compared to 2012.

Report: Cequent Workers Accept Closure Deal

United Steelworkers Local 9550 voted Friday (Feb. 22) to accept what union representatives are calling a retention bonus from Cequent Performance Products, according to a report by the Goshen News. Mike O’Brien, director of United Steelworkers Sub District 4, said the union will not be going to arbitration.

Cequent parent company Trimas Corp. announced in November it would lay off 450 workers at the Goshen, Ind., Cequent plant. Company officials said they were moving the facility’s operations to Reynosa, Mexico, to cut down on shipping costs since it has other plants in Texas and Mexico.

The “retention bonus” amounts to a $3.5 million package with another month of insurance for workers and “a payment of $500 for those on the low end with less than a year in seniority to $36,000 for the top end and it depends on how long the others have been there. They will be paid within that range,” O’Brien said.

Cequent officials plan to close the Goshen plant at the end of this year. The first layoffs were set to take place Friday. The work force will be down to half after July, and the plant will remain open and operating until December.

Cequent Union Workers Eyeing Vote on Friday

The immediate fate of nearly 350 members of the United Steelworkers at the Cequent Performance Products plant in Goshen, Ind., is in their own hands.

The South Bend Tribune reported that on Friday (Feb. 22), members of USW Local 9550 will vote on whether to accept a closure offer from Cequent, which is moving its plant to Mexico, or reject it and go to arbitration.

If workers reject the offer, an arbitration hearing is slated for April 18-19, according to Mike O’Brien, United Steelworkers Sub District 4 director.

Cequent’s parent Trimas Corp. officially announced in late November it would lay off 450 employees, almost 75% of them union workers. At the time, the company said it was moving its operations to Reynosa, Mexico, to reduce shipping costs since it has other plants in Texas and Mexico.

The company makes parts for the automotive and recreational vehicle industries.

In January, U.S. District Court Judge Robert L. Miller Jr. ruled against the union’s attempt to be granted a preliminary injunction that would have prevented Cequent from moving equipment out of its Goshen plant in preparation for its move to Mexico.

However, Miller did affirm a previous ruling that the dispute over the company being able to outsource jobs while laying people off was subject to arbitration.

The company has informed the court that the Goshen facility is not scheduled to close permanently until the end of this year, and that the first layoffs will not occur until Friday. In addition, the company said more than half the employees will remain through the end of June and the remainder will be let go in December.

O’Brien said he won’t try to sway union members either way on the vote.

“There is no such thing as a guarantee,” O’Brien said regarding winning in arbitration. “While we feel confident about our case, we think membership should make that decision, and I am not going to push them one way or the other.”

The union will hold the vote in the Masonic Temple in Goshen, with the results expected sometime between 6 p.m and 7 p.m. Friday.

Despite Ruling, Union’s Still Hopeful on Cequent

Despite losing one battle Wednesday (Jan. 31), United Steelworkers Local 9550 still plans to fight the war as the union tries to save 450 jobs at the Cequent Performance Products plant in Goshen, Ind.

In fact, they won another battle in the ruling handed down by Judge Robert L. Miller Jr. Wednesday in U.S. District Court Northern District of Indiana. Miller ruled against the union’s attempt to be granted a preliminary injunction that would have prevented Cequent from moving equipment out of its Goshen plant in preparation for its move to Mexico.

“Obviously we are disappointed in that portion of the ruling of the court,” said Jim Robinson, United Steelworkers District 7 director.

However, Miller did affirm a previous ruling that the dispute over the company being able to outsource jobs while laying people off, is subject to arbitration.

“The court confirmed that grievance was arbitrable, and confirmed that the arbitrator had sufficient authority to remedy what the company is doing,” Robinson said.

“So to that extent we feel positive about the decision. What we’re saying is, you are sending work to Mexico and laying people off and that violates the contract.”

Cequent officials could not be reached for comment. The company is owned by Detroit, Mich.-based Trimas Corp., which announced the layoffs in late November.

No date has been set for the arbitration hearing, said Mike O’Brien, Sub District 4 director for much of northern Indiana.

The union has received dates from the arbitrator, O’Brien said, and is waiting for the company to respond.

To read the entire story click here.

 

TriMas Closing Down Cequent Plant in Goshen

Cequent Performance Products is moving out from its Goshen. Ind. plant and shipping production to a facility in Reynosa, Mexico, parent company TriMas Corp. announced Wednesday (Nov. 21).

As reported by the Elkhart Truth, it was an unwelcome piece of Thanksgiving news for hundreds of employees of the Goshen facility, where they make hitches and structural components for RVs and trailers. The 450 local jobs will end throughout next year, the company announced.

“They told us they made the decision and then they wished us ‘Happy Thanksgiving,’” said Deb Hathaway, vice president of steelworkers local 9550, which represents more than 350 of the 450 affected people.

“It was a very gloomy situation,” she said, and it will loom heavily on hundreds of family Thanksgiving gatherings tomorrow. “We’re all so thankful we just lost our jobs,” Hathaway said.

In a written announcement of the closing, Dave Wathen, president of Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based TriMas, said, “While these types of decisions are never easy, we make them with significant consideration.”

He continued, “For those employees affected by the closure, the company is committed to working with them during this transition,” said Wathen.

According to the Elkhart Truth report, it’s been a contentious process since the company announced the possibility of moving the jobs last month. The union representing most of the local employees filed a federal lawsuit against the company, the company started having police come to the plant, and earlier today production stopped due to a bomb threat.

That had workers waiting outside for about 2 1/2 hours, Hathaway said. Then company officials made the announcement just before the end of the first shift. The company did allow second-shift workers to use vacation time to take the afternoon off without forfeiting holiday pay, she said.

At the first of next year, the company will tell workers how they’ll start to eliminate departments. Hathaway expects production to move to a single shift as things ramp down.

Meanwhile, the union continues to fight the move, she said. “We’re still fighting,” hoping to push the move into 2014.

To view the entire story click here.

 

Report: No Decision Today on Cequent Facility

A spokesman for Michigan-based Cequent Performance Products Inc. said “no decision will be made or announced today (Nov. 19)” regarding a potential move of the company’s Goshen, Ind., operation to Mexico, according to Inside INdiana Business.

The trailer hitch manufacturer employs more than 400 at the Elkhart County plant.

Cequent makes aftermarket towing and trailer products. The company announced a preliminary decision a few weeks ago to move production to Mexico. It had anticipated announcing a final decision by today.

Unionized steelworkers at the plant have a pending suit in federal court if Cequent decides to move.

 

Cequent Parent Responds to Union Allegations

Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based TriMas Corp. has responded to a claim by Steelworkers Local 9550 that the company does not want to continue meeting with union representatives about the possible closure of its 400-employee Goshen Cequent Performance Products plant, the Goshen News reported in a front-page story on Sunday (Nov. 11).

The union issued the statement Thursday at a protest in front of the plant along Lincolnway East on the east side of the Elkhart County seat.

“As matter of policy, the company does not comment on pending litigation,” Cequent’s management stated in an e-mail. “However, we can tell you that we remain fully committed to honoring our promise to continue meeting with the union at any time up to Nov. 19, to discuss this preliminary recommendation and receive the union’s input.”

Nov. 19 is the date the company has set for a decision on whether the plant that manufactures trailer hitches and other towing products under several brand names will be closed and its production moved to Mexico.

The union filed a federal lawsuit Thursday seeking a court order keeping the company from removing equipment and moving it to Reynosa, Mexico, where Goshen jobs will be moved to if the plant is closed.

 

 

Steelworkers Union Files Suit Against Cequent

The United Steelworkers (USW) International representatives, on behalf of more than 350 Local 9550 members, today (Nov. 8) filed a lawsuit against Cequent Performance Products Inc. in federal court to enjoin the company from moving parts and equipment out of its Goshen, Ind., facility to a plant in Reynosa, Mexico.

The union reported in a press release that Cequent has continued to move parts and equipment out of the plant even though the parties are still bargaining over the decision to move the work out of the country. Cequent, a subsidiary of Bloomfield, Mich.-based TriMas Corp., builds hitch products under the brand names Bulldog, ROLA, Highland, The Pro’s Brand, Draw-Tite, Reese, Hidden Hitch, Fulton, Wesbar and Tekonsha.

Cequent representatives told the union on Oct. 18 it would make its decision as to whether or not it would move the production of trailer hitches to Mexico in order to secure lower wages. Amid a great deal of media attention following union-organized demonstrations outside the Cequent plant on U.S. 33 on the east side of Goshen, the parties have had two meetings. TriMas said it would reach a final decision by Nov. 19.

The USW said in the press release it has offered to continue to meet and bargain over the decision to move – an offer that was rejected by Cequent. The union has filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board for the company’s alleged failure to bargain in good faith.

“We hope that this will get Cequent’s attention and show them that the Steelworkers are serious about trying to keep the work in the United States, we are serious about protecting the rights of our members, and we are serious about Cequent playing by the same rules we are all subject to,” said USW Sub-4 Director Mike O’Brien.

 

 

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