TRW Reports Net Income Plunges 96 Percent
TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. said first-quarter net income fell 96 percent as the company posted $47 million in debt-repayment costs. The Livonia-based company, which counts seat belts, air bags, and brakes among its products, said it posted net income for the latest quarter of $2 million, or 2 cents a share.
Growing Auto Parts Market in China is an Opening for New Business Models
Last year was a remarkable year for the automobile market in China. Car production grew 80 percent and domestic car sales soared nearly 70 percent over the year before. During 2003 the total import to China of cars and car parts grew 86 percent over 2002. China now ranks fourth in automobile production and third in automobile sales in the world. According to PRCDirect — a consulting firm which specializes in the Chinese market — this sales growth is creating a corresponding demand at the aftermarket and OE levels.
Cooper Tire & Rubber Declares 129th Consecutive Quarterly Dividend
Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. has announced a quarterly dividend of 10.5 cents per share on common stock, payable June 30 to stockholders of record at the close of business June 4. This will mark the 129th consecutive quarterly dividend paid by Cooper Tire.
ACC Becomes Silver Sponsor of the Car Care Council Women’s Board
The Automotive Communications Council (ACC) has announced it will sponsor the 2004 Car Care Council’s Women’s Board activities at the “Silver” sponsorship level. ACC is a national, non-profit organization comprised of marketing professionals engaged in public relations, advertising, branding and other communication practices for automotive aftermarket companies.
Edelbrock Reports Improved Sales and Earnings for Third Quarter
Edelbrock Corp. has reported an improvement in sales and earnings for its fiscal 2004 third quarter and nine months which ended on March 25. For the quarter, revenues increased 11.3 percent to $28,551,000 from $25,658,000 in the comparable period of fiscal 2003. Net income for the third quarter of fiscal 2004 increased to $905,000, or 16 cents per diluted share, from net income of $210,000, or 4 cents per diluted share, in the third quarter of fiscal 2003.
Tower Automotive Announces Proposed Offering Of Convertible Senior Debentures
Tower Automotive plans to offer $110 million principal amount of convertible senior debentures due 2024. The company would grant to the initial purchasers an option to purchase an additional $15 million principal amount of the debentures within 30 days after the offering.
Delphi Named One of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens
Delphi has been named one of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens for 2004 by Business Ethics magazine. Now in its fifth year, the annual listing identifies companies among the Russell 1000 — the largest publicly traded companies — that excel at serving a variety of stakeholders. Delphi ranked 34th overall on the 2004 list.
Universal Automotive Begins Second Phase of Integrating TRW Acquisition
Universal Automotive Industries has begun the second phase of a planned program to integrate the operations from its acquisition of TRW Automotive in January 2004. The purchase effectively doubled Universal’s size. Arvin Scott, Universal Automotive’s president and CEO, said phase two focuses on information technology and getting all operations on the same systems platform. Scott said the company hopes to complete the second phase by this summer.
ArvinMeritor and Gillig to Collaborate on Emissions Reducing Technologies
ArvinMeritor’s Commercial Vehicle Systems plans to collaborate with Gillig Corp., on new emission control technologies for the North American transit bus industry. The announcement was made at the American Public Transit Association Bus & Paratransit Conference in Denver, Colo. Gillig, which manufactures heavy duty transit buses, is a 114 year old privately held corporation located in the San Francisco Bay Area.
ASC Industries Passes ISO/TS 16949 Certification Audit
ASC Industries announced this week that the company passed its recent quality audit in accordance with the its ISO/TS 16949:2002 quality rating. ASC received its certification to ISO/TS 16949 in 2003, certification to QS 9000 in 2000 and certification to ISO 9002 in 1999. The bi-annual audit was completed as a requirement of certification to maintain quality standards.
Coni-Seal Subsidiary Offers More Details on the Qualitee International Acquisition
Last week it was announced that Qualitee International was acquired by AutoPartSource, a subsidiary of Roscigno Industries Inc. of Iselin, NJ. Roscigno is a holding company led by Frank Pagano, CEO of Coni-Seal, Lakewood, NJ. The new company, AutoPartSource, will remain headquartered in Richmond, Va., and will continue as a stand alone company, focused on the distribution of brake and clutch products to the undercar segment of the aftermarket.
Making Better Business Decisions
Last time we talked about how a cross-functional management framework, driving business improvement at the process level, can dramatically accelerate the pace of performance-enhancing change. This week we’ll talk about how that same cross-functional management framework can improve the quality of business decisions on a day-to-day basis.