In the USA, the flat die business of EDI has been acquired by Minneapolis based US Bank in a transaction said to "substantially reduce the company's debt load and set the stage for expansion" of its strategic investment programme.
EDI is a leading international supplier of dies and feedblocks used by plastics extrusion processors and web converters. Under the new legal name Extrusion Dies Industries LLC, it will continue to operate with its existing management and staff. In taking over the business from New York based Butler Capital Corp, US Bank restructured debt stemming from a 1998 recapitalization, reducing the debt load by about half.
EDI president and ceo Timothy Callahan states: "It can only be good news for our employees and our customers that EDI now enjoys the support of a leading American bank that recognizes the on-going value of our business and is fully committed to its growth. We look forward to working with US Bank to build on an enterprise that has maintained a positive cash flow even under the difficult credit arrangement and weak market conditions of recent years. In fact, we have already begun re-hiring skilled people in reaction to recent market demand."
The restructuring will also enable EDI to accelerate an on-going strategic programme to establish regional service centres to provide international customers with sales, technical, and die remanufacturing support. Such centres already operate in the UK, central Europe, and Japan.
Based in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, EDI employs 170 people there and at a subsidiary in the UK. It sells half of its dies outside the US.
More information from: Karl Maurer, Extrusion Dies - TEL: +1 715 726 1202. EMAIL: sales@extrusiondies.com
