KYB America 2004 Product Catalog Now Available
KYB America has announced that its 2004 “World Class Shocks and Struts” product catalog is now available. The catalog features the entire KYB shock and strut product line, as well as a much expanded range of strut mounts and boots, with a new image to reflect the company’s position as a leading manufacturer of quality shocks and struts.
Lear Downplays SEC Inquiry
Lear Corp. CEO Robert Rossiter on Wednesday downplayed an informal investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission into its employment of corporate officers’ relatives and insider business transactions. The head of the Southfield, Mich.-based auto-interiors supplier also told analysts that the probe is strictly related to disclosure — not whether there was financial misconduct. Management, he added, quickly corrected the disclosure omissions as soon as they were pointed out.
Firms Eye Cooper, Dana Auto Part Units-Sources
A handful of large private equity firms are considering bids for two key automotive parts businesses on the auction block, sources close to the situation said. Both Dana Corp. and Cooper Tire and Rubber Co. have announced they may divest their auto parts businesses. Each unit may separately fetch $1 billion or more, analysts estimate.
ArvinMeritor Receives Vendor of the Year Award from NAPA Canada
ArvinMeritor’s Light Vehicle Aftermarket (LVA) group has received the 2003 Vendor of the Year 2003 from NAPA Canada. NAPA Canada is part of Genuine Parts Company, a distributor of automotive replacement parts in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico.
Linamar to Buy Out Wescast in Joint Venture; Reports Fourth Quarter Loss of $1.3 Million
Wescast Industries Inc. plans to sell its 50 percent stake in its European joint venture with Linamar Corp. to Linamar, the auto-parts makers announced Wednesday. The two companies were still negotiating the sale of Weslin Industries Inc., and did not provide any financial details of the transaction. In a conference call to discuss quarterly results, Linamar chief executive Linda Hasenfratz did not expect Weslin — a joint venture established in 1999 to manufacture iron automotive castings for the European market — would become profitable soon.
Small is Satisfactory: Dura Builds a Niche
So it’s not as big as Delphi. It doesn’t employ as many as Lear. But Lawrence Denton, chief executive for Dura Automotive Systems Inc., says he’s satisfied with his company’s size. Dura, he says, is just better off being small.
Foreign Countries Try to Lure Auto Jobs
Luis Salazar’s booth is one of the largest at the Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress, with four columns, flags and several comfortable leather chairs. But with space that rivals General Motors Corp.’s and Ford Motor Co.’s exhibits, Salazar isn’t pushing cool 21st-century technology, sensors or car parts — he’s pushing Mexico. If you have jobs, the Mexican deputy trade commissioner has plenty of land, workers and a proven track record with the auto industry to offer.
Great Britain’s Automotive Aftermarket Holds Potential for U.S. Suppliers
Recent changes in market access regulations and similarities between consumers in the U.K. and U.S. make the $24 billion automotive aftermarket in Great Britain a potential sweet spot for U.S. suppliers.
Auto Part Suppliers Study Jobs
Automotive jobs will continue to leave Michigan, but there are remedies, says a report on the future of manufacturing to be delivered today at the opening session of the Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress in Cobo Center in Detroit. The U.S. is expected to see an 11 percent drop in its automotive production jobs by 2010, according to “The Odyssey of the Auto Industry” a study conducted by Roland Berger Strategy Consultants for the Original Equipment Suppliers Association.
TRW Trims Losses
Livonia-based TRW Automotive Holdings Corp., the world’s No. 2 maker of automotive air bags, said its fourth-quarter loss narrowed to $1 million, or 1 cent a share, as currency-exchange gains and auto-parts demand boosted sales. TRW has a year-earlier loss of $33 million. Sales climbed 12 percent to $2.98 billion from $2.67 billion, the company said in a statement. A year ago, TRW was part of defense contractor Northrop Grumman Corp.