From Automotive News Europe
Akron, Ohio - International Automotive Components Group said today it expanded its global automotive carpets and acoustic parts business by purchasing key pieces of insolvent German supplier Stankiewicz.
"This acquisition strengthens greatly IAC's operational capability and technical know-how in the area of automotive interior carpets and acoustical products. IAC, already a leader in the segment in North America, will now be a global leader in these products," IAC chairman Wilbur Ross said in a statement.
IAC bought Stankiewicz's nine plants in Germany, Belgium, Poland and the Czech Republic for an undisclosed amount. The deal is expected to be completed by early to mid-July, at which time Stankiewicz would emerge from insolvency.
The plants generate more than $208 million in annual sales, the IAC statement said.
Stankiewicz is a leader in supplying European premium auto makers with insulation, dampening products, sound absorbers, floor coverings and other coverings. After it filed for insolvency on Dec. 29, key customers such as BMW AG and Daimler AG provided the 64-year-old company unspecified support to prevent disruption of their assembly lines.
Stankiewicz's other top customers include Audi, Renault and General Motors.
The company's two US factories, one in Spartanburg, South Carolina, the other in Vance, Alabama, and its plant in Sauzet, France, are not part of the deal.
The Stankiewicz plants will be absorbed into IAC's European business unit, which is made up of plants and other facilities once owned by US suppliers Lear Corp., Visteon Corp. and Collins & Aikman Corp.
IAC Group, based in New York and owned by billionaire investor Ross, ranks No. 39 on the Automotive News list of the top 100 global suppliers with worldwide sales to auto makers of $4600 million in 2008.
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