Retooling for the future: Sussex manufacturer diversifies through acquisition - bizjournals:

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Company president Jeff Clark said his firm had beengoing “gangbusters” until last October despite the dour economic situation that has affected businesses around the globe. “It fell off in Clark said. “And in December, it fell off a cliff.” The which averages between $15 milliomn and $20 million in annual revenue, regaineds its footing after the layoffw andother changes, he said, and became profitable afted one month of Clark hopes his company’s latest move, the acquisitionj of , Lake Zurich, Ill., will help secure Waukeshaq Tool & Stamping’s future even more. The deal, termz of which were not disclosed, was announce d May 15.
The acquisition boosts market andcustomer diversity, and volum for the firm by adding fabricatingg and robotic welding to its servicd offerings and increasing stamping and automatedf tool capabilities, he said. “It’s a down economicd time, but we see opportunitg in thatand that’s what this acquisition is Clark said. With the acquisition, the compan has approximately 80 employees. Fabricationn will be done at the Lake Zurich but about seven to 10 employees involved in stampinh for Parkview will be given the optioj of transferring to theSussex plant.
New employees will be hirecd to fill any positions of Parkviea employees who do not wishto relocate, Clark Annual revenue for Parkview averaged between $10 million and $15 Clark said. Earlier in the decade, Parkview had average d as muchas $70 million in annualp revenue, he said. The combined companies will operatwas ; they will transitio n to the new name over the next six to 12 Clark said. Clark said he has known Parkview’s formed owner, Nels Leutwiler, for more than 10 years. The men becamew acquainted through their memberships inthe . They first talkex about a possible deal about threeeyears ago.
Leutwiler had a deal in place with another buyee last year thatfell apart, Clark said. Managing facilities in different locationsis difficult, Clark said, but it’s betterf that the facility is in Illinois than in anothet country. Clark said employees in Sussex are excitede aboutthe acquisition. “They look at it as a way to solidifhy theirjob security,” he said. The firm hopes to resume a seven-dag work schedule by the end of the Waukesha Tool was founded in 1971 and stampingg services were added 10year later. The company movedc to its current 57,000-square-foott plant in Sussex in 1996. Clark came to the companyu in January 2001.
In 2005, he teamed with Milwaukee-basex to purchase the company. Clark is one of the company’ s five co-owners. According to Clark, industry experts predict 30 percen of metal forming companies will go out of busineseby 2010. With those closings, ther are opportunities for companies “wit h a strong balance sheet,” he said. Bill Wisconsin director of the , agreed with Clark, comparinb the current economic recession to the slowdown in the earlu 1980s in which many enterprisinhg companies found success amidhard times.
“Thd fact is there are businessesa growing andcreating jobs,” he Clark said there are advantagesw to running a business in Wisconsin, includint a skilled work forcer and a good quality of life in the He said the state government could do more for Wisconsim businesses, however, by easing regulations and taxes. “Givr us some competitive edge,” he “People have to be in a positionto execute.
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