ARCHBOLD WEATHER

Alex Products Sold To North American Stamping Group

No Layoffs Planned


In a move that surprised many, Alex Products, which started and grew in Ridgeville Corners, has been purchased by another firm.

North American Stamping Group, a Portland, Tenn.- based company, announced Monday, May 14, it purchased Alex Products effective Sunday, May 13.

Michael Haughey, chief executive officer of North American Stamping Group, said there are no plans to lay off any AP workers.

Haughey said his company “has the financial wherewithal to go build a plant anywhere in North America– even in the world– if we wish. We know how to build the building; we know where to get the equipment.

“This game is really about people, and we just bought a company– but more importantly, we just hired 1,000 people in one day, so that’s what we’re really excited about.

“We had a chance to do an introductory meeting with all 1,000 people. I’ve personally met with them all, introduced them to our company, kind of walked through what we’re looking to do.”

He said some will buy a company, then look to eliminate whatever redundancies exist.

“We don’t think that way. There’s more than enough work,” he said.

NASG

Haughey said North American Stamping Group is “a privately-held company. We have eight facilities between Canada, the U.S., and Mexico, and we do metal stampings and assembly in the automotive market.

“We’re multi-generational, and even though it’s owned by two families, it’s run by a professional management team and an independent board of directors.”

In a press release, NASG officials described themselves as “a market leader in the Tier II automotive stamping and assembly sector, providing unique and diversified products to customers for more than 40 years.”

Haughey said, “If you understand what a seat metal structure looks like, their (Alex Products) expertise is in the wire bending, the tube bending, the engineering, and the resistance welding.

“They also stamp.

“Our company does a lot more stamping than them, but we’re not as good on the assembly side.

“So that’s where we kind of talk about our skill sets complimenting each other. We’ll be able to do amazing things on the stamping end of their business, but they’ll be able to help us on the seating assembly side.”

Haughey said AP customers wanted it to expand into the southern United States, Mexico, and Canada.

“It’s hard for a privatelyheld company. We’ve been pretty fortunate ourselves, but (expanding to other regions or countries) was nothing that they were looking to do,” he said.

“So now they’re a part of our group. Now that they’re part of a group that covers the entire North American Free Trade Zone… if a customer wants to run something in Mexico, we would be able to do that, and they could participate in that business.”

Getting Together

Haughey declined to give the financial terms of the transaction.

“It was a big deal. I’m not going to tell you how much, but I think the thing to say is, three people bid on the business and a fair price was paid,” he said.

David VonDeylen, owner of Alex Products, said in a press release, “NASG was carefully selected to take Alex Products to new heights.

“Both companies have been privately owned for more than 40 years and have a strikingly similar culture in relationship with customers, and employees are indispensable.”

Haughey said, “We wanted everyone to stay, and the owner has agreed. He’s signed a five-year contract to stay with us.”

VonDeylen will become NASG vice president of seating.

“I hope he stays longer than that, but we wanted some commitment from the people there, and the management team, that they were committed to stay.”

Haughey said a broker came to him with the opportunity to purchase Alex Products.

“We know of AP, we compete against AP. AP is a solid company. They have great quality. They have great delivery. They do an extraordinary job in seat metal structures. That’s kind of their big market.

“And so, we kind of looked at them and said, ‘yeah, we’d love to have them in the family.’”

Assets

In addition to its 1,000 employees, Alex Products has three manufacturing facilities totaling 450,000 square feet of production space located in Ridgeville Corners, Bryan, and Paulding.

There are also a technical center in Ridgeville and a sales office in Michigan.

NASG specializes in automotive seating components, exhaust components, noisevibration harshness components, heat shields, structural chassis parts, window regulators, and brake components.

North American Stamping Group has over 2,000 employees, two technical centers, and ten manufacturing facilities with more than 112 stamping presses.



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