Article Number : 815 |
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| Date | 1/18/2006 10:03:14 AM |
| Written By | LGM & Associates Technical Flooring Services |
| View this article at: | //floorbiz.com/BizResources/NPViewArticle.asp?ArticleID=815 |
| Abstract | Laval, Quebec, Canada—After many months of negotiations, Pfleiderer AG has purchased all the assets of Uniboard Canada, one of the only vertically integrated laminate flooring companies in North America... |
| Article | Laval, Quebec, Canada—After many months of negotiations, Pfleiderer AG has purchased all the assets of Uniboard Canada, one of the only vertically integrated laminate flooring companies in North America. It also produces an array of other wood-based products and has annual sales of more than US$600 million. Guy Lacroix, president and CEO of Uniboard, said the transaction will have a positive affect on the company. “Pfleiderer is in the same business as we are and twice the size. We will therefore be a much larger group and will benefit from its many synergies as well as purchasing power of commodities.” He added that Pfleiderer is also a public company, something Uniboard’s previous owner, the Kunz family, is not. “It has a wide access to various sources of capital, something which was not available before.” Based in Germany, Pfleiderer is one of Europe’s top system providers for engineered wood products and melamine faced chipboard through a series of 19 plants in Germany, U.S., Poland, Russia and now Canada. It has over 5,000 employees and annual sales close to US$2 billion. Ginette Desjardins, Uni-board’s vice president of sales and marketing, said the German company manufactures a broad range of raw particleboard, floor panels, MFP boards and decorative panels as well as high pressure laminates, making it a preferred partner for both the furniture and specialist retailers. Prior to owning Uni-board, Pfleiderer had previously done business in the U.S., though not in engineered wood or laminate flooring. It was the owner of a poles and towers operation which has since been divested. Hans Overdiek, Pfleiderer’s CEO, said the acquisition “is a major step toward new growth with new products in new and attractive markets. We have created an ideal foundation to expand Uni-board’s high-growth flooring segment through targeted capital expenditure over the next few years. At the same time, we will use growth opportunities in other regions such as Eastern Europe over the medium term.” With the Kunz family withdrawing from all Uni-board activities, Steve Farrell, has been promoted to CEO, replacing Lacroix. Farrell was most recently the company’s CFO. While a few other top positions have new faces, Desjardins noted there is no change in the flooring division as Jacques Morin continues to be vice president and general manager. To create the growth Overdiek cited, the company is in the process of investing $21 million in Uni-board’s finishing plant which will double its capacity. “There will also be significant expansion plans in the U.S. such as building a large-scale integrated plant starting at the end of this year,” Desjardins added. To learn more about Uni-board and how this acquisition will benefit you, the company will unveil its new face at Surfaces in booth 3464, Feb. 1 to 3 in Las Vegas at the Sands Expo Center. For more information, call 800/361-7502. |