ACCURIDE ANNOUNCES EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT CHANGE;
BOARD APPOINTS KEATING AS PRESIDENT and CEO
Accuride Pre-Announces First Quarter Earnings
EVANSVILLE, Ind., April 23, 2002--Accuride
Corporation's Board of Directors announced today
that it has appointed Terrence (Terry) Keating
to serve as the Company's new President and
CEO and elected him to the Board of Directors,
effective May 1.
Keating is currently Senior Vice President
and General Manager of Accuride's
Wheel Division. He replaces William (Bill) Greubel
who resigned to join Wabash
National Corporation.
"Since joining Accuride in 1996 as the
Vice President of Operations, Terry has been
in a key leadership role and instrumental in
driving operating improvements throughout Accuride's
manufacturing facilities," said James H.
Greene, Jr., an Accuride director and member
of KKR, LLC, the general partner of Kohlberg
Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P.
"Terry's relentless focus on and success
with customer service, continuou improvement,
quality and world class operating performance
will ensure Accuride's continued, steady progress
toward its business objectives," added
Greene. "We are confident that with Terry
at the helm, Accuride will continue to foster
a culture of continuous improvement and will
fulfill the expectations of customers, employees,
lenders, and investors alike."
"My focus is to continue implementing
the successful strategies that are already in
motion," Keating said. "Now that our
industry is beginning its recovery, my primary
job is to ensure that we reap the full benefits
of our
extensive improvement initiatives and continue
to drive excellence in all that we do. I'm incredibly
proud to work with Accuride's excellent leadership
team and highly talented workforce. Together
we will continue to enhance Accuride's reputation
as the leader in wheels."
Prior to joining Accuride, Keating was the
manager of the Indianapolis Diesel Engine Plant
of International Truck and Engine Corporation,
a division of Navistar International Company.
Keating holds a MBA in Operations Management
from Indiana University and a BS in Manufacturing
Technology from Purdue University.
Separately, the Company said it expects improved
first quarter results with adjusted EBITDA of
$13.1 million compared to $10.0 million for
the first quarter of 2001, an increase of 31.4%.
Net sales for the quarter were $77.8 million
compared to net sales of $90.9 million for the
prior year. The Company's liquidity position
remains strong with $31.7 million in cash and
revolver availability of $27.5 million.
"We are pleased to see that despite a
14% decrease in revenue, our margins have increased
by 580 basis points as we work our cost and
productivity programs throughout the Company,"
said Keating. "Although sales continue
to be soft, the strong first quarter class 8
net order activity will bode well for sales
increases in the upcoming quarters."
Accuride Corporation, a KKR portfolio company,
is North America's largest manufacturer and
supplier of wheels for heavy/medium trucks and
trailers. The Company offers the broadest product
line in the North American heavy/medium wheel
industry and is the only North American manufacturer
and supplier of both steel and forged aluminum
heavy/medium wheels. Accuride Corporation also
produces wheels for military, buses, commercial
light trucks and sport utility vehicles, and
for passenger cars. Accuride Corporation has
steel wheel operations in Henderson, Kentucky;
London, Ontario, Canada; and in Monterrey, Mexico.
Accuride has aluminum wheel operations in Erie,
Pennsylvania, and Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Additionally,
the Company produces tire molds at its Erie,
Pennsylvania, facility. Accuride is also involved
in a commercial tire and wheel assembly joint
venture in Springfield, Ohio, and Talbotville,
Ontario, Canada. For more information, visit
Accuride's website at http://www.accuridecorp.com.
Statements contained in this
news release that are not purely historical
are forward-looking statements within the meaning
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995, including statements regarding
the Company's expectations, hopes, beliefs and
intentions on strategies regarding the future.
It is important to note that
the Company's actual future results could differ
materially from those projected in such forward-looking
statements because of a number of factors, including
but not limited to general economic, business
and financing conditions, labor relations, governmental
action, competitor pricing activity, expense
volatility and other risks detailed from time
to time in the Company's Securities and Exchange
Commission filings. Accuride assumes no obligation
to update the information included in this release.
Contacts:
Accuride Corporation
Eva Schmitz,
Phone: 812/962-5011
Pager: 888/711-8778
Back to 2002 Archive
|
 |
