WILMINGTON, Del.–A subsidiary of Simmons has entered into an agreement to purchase assets of Western Nonwovens, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection here yesterday.
According to court filings, SBC Manufacturing, the Simmons subsidiary, will purchase certain assets of Western Nonwovens and all of the assets of two Western Nonwovens affiliates, Mid America Fiber and Florida Nonwovens, for $4 million. The purchase encompasses property, plants, equipment and other assets at Mid America Fiber’s facilities at Sauget, Ill., and Florida Nonwovens’ facility in Orlando, Fla. The purchase agreement also includes an option for SBC to buy assets related to Western Nonwovens’ Carson, Calif., facility.
Western Nonwovens manufactures non-woven materials for mattresses, furniture, automobiles, aerospace products and other markets. In its Chapter 11 filing, the company estimated its assets to be worth about $28.4 million and its liabilities to be about $106.9 million. The company blamed “long-term liquidity issues, rising raw-materials costs and declining sales” for its weak financial performance. Western Nonwovens also said it closed facilities in Los Angeles, St. Louis and Clearfield, Utah, in late June and early July.
