|
 May 9, 2007 Color-Fi press release
Formed Fiber
Technologies Announces the Retirement of David MacMahon,
Names Mark Bennett President & CEO
AUBURN, ME -- April 9, 2007 -- Formed Fiber Technologies,
Inc., (FFT) announces the retirement of long-time President and CEO David
MacMahon, effective April 15, 2007. MacMahon will become Vice Chairman of
the FFT Board of Directors, focusing on strategic issues. Mark Bennett has
been named to succeed MacMahon as president & CEO.
Citing a desire to spend more time with family, MacMahon had
been planning his retirement for some time and decided now is a good point
in the company’s growth for him to step back from the day-to-day
operations.
MacMahon has led FFT (formerly Gates Formed-Fibre Products,
Inc.- GFFP) since its inception. Under his leadership, the company grew
from a small start-up to the leading manufacturer of automotive trunk trim
systems.
In 2003, GFFP was acquired by Morgenthaler Partners, a
middle-market private equity firm and renamed Formed Fiber Technologies,
Inc. FFT doubled in size over the last five years and today has annual
sales of over $150 million and 1,000 associates at manufacturing facilities
in Maine, Ohio, and South Carolina.
Bennett has over 24 years experience in the automotive
industry. Since 1999, he was President and CEO with McKechnie Vehicle
Components. He began his career as a Material Handling Manager with Arrow
Molded Plastics, and advanced rapidly to Plant Manager. A native of Maine,
he received a bachelor's degree in Production & Operations Management
from Ohio State University.
FFT Chairman Fred Festa said the company’s board of directors
strongly supports Bennett and the FFT management team, and is confident the
company is in good hands. “Mark knows the automotive supply business,
personifies our company’s values, and has a hands-on management style. His
extensive manufacturing and management experience will make him an ideal
leader for FFT."
About FFT
Formed Fiber Technologies is the leading supplier of molded, nonwoven
system solutions to North American automotive OEMs and Tier 1 automotive
suppliers. FFT has over 1,000 associates at three manufacturing facilities
in Maine, Ohio and South Carolina. For more information about FFT, visit www.formedfiber.com.
About Morgentaler Partners
Morgenthaler is a leading national buyout and venture-capital firm with
offices in Boston, MA; Boulder, CO; Cleveland, OH; Menlo Park, CA; and
Princeton, NJ. The firm has approximately $2.5 billion under management and
has funded more than 250 companies over its 38-year history. For more
information about Morgenthaler Partners, visit www.morgenthaler.com.
February
25, 2007 The Sumter Item
Environment-friendly processes puts Color-Fi on the
cutting edge
Link
to article
By JOE PERRY, Item Staff Writer
About half of the new cars in North America have trunk and
floor carpeting and fiber that was made by Maine-based Formed Fiber
Technologies, and the majority of that fiber came from recycled water and
soda bottles, putting Sumter's FFT subsidiary Color-Fi on the cutting edge
of an environmentally friendly manufacturing process.
Color-Fi on Neeley Street in the Guignard Drive Industrial
Park recently received the Greater Sumter Chamber of Commerce 2006 Large
Manufacturer of the Year Award for the second time, having also won in
2005.
Color-Fi is a growing company. Parent company FFT CEO and
President David MacMahon was in town last week as FFT's board of directors
approved some capital expenditures to upgrade equipment. MacMahon said the
automotive market dictates the FFT's direction, and joked that the inside
of most new cars resembles a living room — which is increasingly true — and
equals FFT and Color-Fi increasing their market share.
In addition to the carpeting in cars, Color-Fi's solution-dyed
polyester fibers (about 5,000 different colors) end up in janitorial
supplies, paint rollers and home furnishings — or are sold to other
companies for further manufacturing.
THE PAST AND THE FUTURE
Things have not always been bright and sunny at Color-Fi. In Sumter since
1984, what was then Martin Color-Fi filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
protection in November 1998. Reorganization and several lean years
followed. In November 2003, Color-Fi was acquired by Formed Fiber
Technologies Inc., a leading automotive interiors supplier, and its
majority investor, Morgenthaler Partners, a major middle market buyout
firm.
FFT has its corporate headquarters and design and engineering
center in a 300,000-square-foot facility in Auburn, Maine. In addition to a
164,000-square-foot facility in Sydney, Ohio, FFT has a facility of about
400,000 square feet in Sumter. Color-Fi Plant Manager Wilbur Bullard said
there are 50 to 60 employees on the floor at any given time, and a total of
200 plus — on a payroll of more than $7 million — that work four shifts,
keeping Color-Fi humming with activity 24-7.
MacMahon said that in 2006, FFT produced 2.9 million complete
trunk systems in 29 different models of cars, ranging from Acura, BMW and
Buick to Honda, Hyundai, Pontiac, Saturn, Subaru and Toyota. As the
influence of Japanese imports has risen in the consumer marketplace, so has
FFT's profile. MacMahon said he's been doing business in Japan for over 20
years, building long-term relationships, which will in turn fuel the need
for increased productivity and more workers in Sumter.
'NOTHING IS WASTED'
Giant boxes of shredded plastic bottles take up a decent chunk of floor
space, and sit beside boxes of polyester pellets that will — through an
involved 28-step process — be converted into consumer products. It's a
completely "green" process, said Bullard, meaning Color-Fi is
making a profit for FFT while at the same time keeping material out of
landfills.
"Nothing is really wasted — even the waste is converted
back," he said.
Material that doesn't make the cut quality-wise becomes the
fiber that goes under the carpet on the floor of the car.
With any large-scale production facility, efficiency is a key
factor. A small sign in the plant on some equipment states that 83.11
pounds of first quality fiber comes out of every 100 pounds of raw
material, (boxes of shredded water bottles, for instance, that are bought
already shredded) which seems like a pretty good ratio, but MacMahon said
his goal is to get into the '90s.
In terms of output reaching the marketplace, MacMahon pointed
out fiber being spun out of several rollers that was destined for FFT's
site in Maine.
"It'll probably be in a trunk before the first of
March," he said.
Roughly a third of what comes out of the Sumter facility is
fed into the parent company, he said, another third goes into automotive
supplies, and the other third is non-automotive related. Currently, though,
the trunk liners are the most high profile segment of the company's
business, and it all started in the early '80s because auto manufacturers
saw the need to upgrade the trunk, but lacked a supply.
"We started this business in response to a demand for
textiles in the trunk of the car," he said. "We were the ones who
started it. Manufacturers wanted something better."
ONWARD AND UPWARD
Since it took over in 2003, FFT has invested about $3 million in the Sumter
facility to upgrade equipment and improve productivity.
"Wilbur's got a three-pronged manufacturing
strategy," MacMahon said. "One is to be more efficient in terms
of yield, and utility costs, second is to be more labor productive, and the
third is to get more out(put). If you do the first two, you get more
out(put) anyway."
Bullard's strategies are seeing real results, MacMahon said,
and Human Resources Manager Amy Mohr said Color-Fi is currently looking to
hire about 20 people, even though it has probably created about 40 new jobs
in the last few years. Mohr said the average tenure of a Color-Fi employees
is about 10 years.
So what is the secret to maintaining a skilled and receptive
workforce?
"We have an egalitarian benefits package — in other
words, the machine operator has the same benefits package that Wilbur
(Bullard) does," said MacMahon, "same as I have, for that
matter."
He also praises the "outstanding medical program"
that places a lot of emphasis on the preventative side.
"It's all based on wellness," he said.
"Philosophically, what we're saying is, we'll never control medical
costs. I don't know if it's a trend, but it's what we're doing. We've been
focused on this for a couple years."
Corporate culture is increasingly looking to invest proactively
— free physicals, free nicotine patches for those looking to quit smoking,
for instance — in an effort to stave off the expensive and
productivity-sapping medical procedures that harm the bottom line.
Keeping workers healthy is one thing, but they also have to be
well trained. Mohr and MacMahon said Central Carolina Technical College has
been an integral factor in keeping the in-flow of skilled workers steady
with the Work Keys program.
"Those guys do a fantastic job," MacMahon said,
adding One Stop and the Santee-Lynches Council of Governments as key
partners in funneling qualified workers into jobs that start at $10 an
hour.
Another tribute to the workforce, he said, is the plant
recently receiving ISO 9001 certification with zero non-conformities, which
is very rare.
ISO is the International Organization for Standardization — a
network comprising various industry experts who set uniform standards and
continually monitor them for any deviations.
Color-Fi, MacMahon said, is a very well-managed business, with
an excellent plant manager and top notch human resource manager.
"Which in turn makes it a great
place to work," he said. "Everybody will tell you the same thing,
that their associates are the greatest assets, but we happen to believe
it."
January
2007 Greater Sumter Chamber of Commerce
Color-Fi Named Large Manufacturer of the Year
January
2006 Greater Sumter Chamber of Commerce
Color-Fi Named Medium Manufacturer of the Year
Color-Fi is a leading North American manufacturer of
solution-dyed polyester fibers. While the company has been in Sumter since
1984, its existence was endangered just a couple of years ago by hard
economic times. But after a financial reorganization and a change in
ownership, Color-Fi has returned from the brink and is currently in a state
of growth. 
In 2004, Color-Fi was acquired by Formed Fiber Technologies,
Inc. (FFT), a leading automoitve interiors supplier and its majority
investor, Morgenthaler Partners, a major middle market buyout firm. FFT
transferred its solution dyed polyester operation to Sumter and has used
its operational expertise to enhance Color-Fi's competitive advantage,
focusing on specialty and custom fibers.
With annual sales inexcess of $40 million, Color-Fi employs
more than 200 workers in Sumter, with a total payroll of more than $7
million. Over the past two yers, Color-FI invested well inexcess of $3
million in equipment upgrades to improve the company's competitiveness.
Color-Fi's associates are recognized and valued for the contributions
they make to the company's success. Associates at Color-Fi can expect
competitive wages and beenfits, safe working conditions and opportunity for
advancement. Additionally, full-time employees receive a benefit package
that includes health, dental, prescription and vision coverage, paid
holidays, a retirement plan, and company-wide life insurance. Color-Fi also
values the development of its employees and has instituted a tuition
reimbursement program to help pay for educational expenses. It also has a
wellness program, and an Employee Assistance Program.
Color-Fi believes in contributing to the community as well,
with a United Way program that matches employees 50%. It encourages its
associates to be active in the community and each year its employees donate
hundreds of hours of volunteer time to organizations all across Sumter.
November
24, 2003 Morgenthaler press release
Formed Fiber Technologies, Inc., Acquires Martin
Color-Fi
Expands Woven and
Nonwoven Platform Company by Adding Leading Maker of Color Polyester Fiber
AUBURN, Maine -- Formed Fiber Technologies and its majority
investor, Morgenthaler Partners, a leading middle market buyout company,
announced today that they have acquired Martin Color-Fi, Inc (MCF). MCF,
based in Sumter, South Carolina, is a leading North American producer of
polyester fiber. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. FFT is the leading
supplier of thermoformed, nonwoven system solutions to North American
automotive OEMs and Tier 1 automotive suppliers.
"Martin Color-Fi represents a critical source of raw
material for FFT, both now and for our future growth plans," said
David MacMahon, President and CEO of FFT. "This acquisition allows us
to consolidate FFT's relatively small solution-dyed polyester fiber
manufacturing operation with MCF's larger facility and thus achieve
economies of scale." 
The consolidated business will continue to serve all of MCF's
current customers, in addition to FFT. "Acquisition by FFT brings
increased financial strength to MCF and assures customers of a long-term,
reliable source of solution-dyed polyester fiber," said MacMahon. FFT
and Morgenthaler continue in their search to expand FFT through strategic
acquisition.
"The increasing reliance by automakers on a few key
suppliers makes it imperative to grow," said Simon Feiglin of
Morgenthaler and a member of the FFT board of directors.
About Formed Fiber
Technologies
Formed Fiber Technologies is the leading supplier of thermoformed, nonwoven
system solutions to North American automotive OEMs and Tier 1 automotive
suppliers. Founded in 1979, it employs 600 associates at two
state-of-the-art manufacturing plants in Auburn, Maine, and in Sidney,
Ohio. Its website can be found at www.formedfiber.com.
About Color-Fi
Color-Fi is a leading producer of polyester staple fiber and a QS9000/ISO
9002 certified company. It is based in Sumter, SC and employs 250
associates. Color-Fi's website can be found at www.colorfi.com.
About Morgenthaler
Founded in 1968, Morgenthaler is a leading, national private-equity firm
with a middle-market, management buyout group based in Cleveland, Ohio, and
a venture-capital group based in Menlo Park, California. The firm has
funded more than 180 companies over its 34-year history. With its new fund of
$850 million raised in July of 2001, Morgenthaler now has a total of $2
billion under management.
The firm's buyout group focuses on management buyouts and
leveraged recapitalizations of stand-alone middle-market companies, as well
as divisions or subsidiaries of larger corporations. Morgenthaler has
traditionally been strong in partnering with management teams to build
industry-leading companies. For more information regarding the firm, visit www.morgenthaler.com.
|
