Wabash spin-off may end restructuring

Jan. 22, 2002
Troubled trailer maker Wabash National Corp. of Lafayette, IN, has spun off its wholly owned European subsidiary, Europaische Trailerzug Beteiligungsgessellschaft mbH (ETZ), in what Wabash hopes will be the last step in its restructuring effort. ETZ is the majority shareholder of Bayerische Trailerzug Gessellschaft fur Bimodalen Guterverkehr mbH (BTZ), a European RoadRailer operation based in Munich,

Troubled trailer maker Wabash National Corp. of Lafayette, IN, has spun off its wholly owned European subsidiary, Europaische Trailerzug Beteiligungsgessellschaft mbH (ETZ), in what Wabash hopes will be the last step in its restructuring effort.

ETZ is the majority shareholder of Bayerische Trailerzug Gessellschaft fur Bimodalen Guterverkehr mbH (BTZ), a European RoadRailer operation based in Munich, Germany. RoadRailer is Wabash's brand name for intermodal freight trailers that can be moved via trucks and railways.

Richard Dessimoz, Wabash's acting CEO, said he believes the spin-off of the company's European subsidiary represents the completion of Wabash's restructuring initiatives, which started in September 2001. Those efforts included the closure of two trailer factories in Ft. Madison, IA and Scott County, TN, and the reduction of Wabash's used trailer inventory from $120 million down to $50 million. Some 2,000 workers were laid off as well.

Wabash has been in serious financial trouble since late last year. It lost $61.4 million in the third quarter of 2001, compared to income of $5 million in the same period of 2000, because of declining sales. For the first nine months of 2001, Wabash's net sales dropped by nearly 30% to $697 million, with losses rising to $97 million.

The closure of its two factories and a California parts distribution facility, along with the layoffs, forced Wabash to take a $40.5 million pre-tax restructuring charge last year – along with a $28.7 million pre-tax charge related to its reduction plans for used trailer inventories.

About the Author

Sean Kilcarr | Editor in Chief

Sean Kilcarr is a former longtime FleetOwner senior editor who wrote for the publication from 2000 to 2018. He served as editor-in-chief from 2017 to 2018.

 

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of FleetOwner, create an account today!

Sponsored Recommendations

Take Control of Your Finances: A Practical Guide for Carriers in Trucking

This guide is designed to help you navigate these challenges, featuring strategies for automation, examples of effective tools, and a real-world success story from Phoenix Cargo...

Report: The 2024-2025 State Of Heavy-Duty Repair

Fullbay's fifth annual State of Heavy-Duty Repair compiles insights from almost 1,000 experts and over 3,500 shops. If you aren't leveraging these proven data points, your competition...

Guide For Managing Maintenance

The Guide for Managing Maintenance is a comprehensive resource designed to help fleet managers improve their maintenance operations, reduce downtime, and lower overall fleet costs...

The Road Ahead: 2025 Trucking and Fleet Insights

Discover how fleet operators are impacted by challenges like driver onboarding delays and complex compliance, and the critical need for technology to boost efficiency and cut ...