Grede Foundries files for bankruptcy protection - St. Louis Business Journal:

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Wayzata Investment Partners LLCof Minn., an SEC-registered investment adviser and manager of private investment funds with more than $5 billiohn in assets, has offered to provide a $45 milliob temporary loan facility to allow time for an orderlyy sale under the supervision of the Bankruptcy Since 1992, Wayzata has invested more than $12 billionb in more than 600 investments. The filing, made Tuesdahy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of was driven by the impact of the current economicd downturn on the company andits customers, particularlyh the automotive industry, said Richard Koenings chairman of the board of directors for Wauwatosa-based Grede.
The reorganization and assety sale is expected to position the company for a turnaround as the country emerges from the most difficultg economic period it has seenin generations, he said. “The significan t deterioration in the automotive and constructionn industries and the resulting impact on our company and the foundru industry in general require that we take this strategic Koenings said. “We have carefully explored many and believe a sale to a stronv financial backer like Wayzata is the best way to effectively proceed in what has been an exceedinglydifficulr marketplace.
” Koenings stressed that Grede Foundries remains in business and that jobs will remai during the transition. “This move gives us the time to restructurre while we continue to do businesse and operateour plants,” he said. “Grede will continue to buy goodes and services from its support its work force and provided its customers with the same quality productsw andservice they’ve come to expect from us. Our goal is to preservw and strengthen our businesse so that we can compete successfully in the Wayzata has also agreed to make thefirsty bid, often called a “stalkinhg horse” bid, for Grede.
“Wayzata’x commitment shows their belief in the strength of the Grede name and its respected position in thefoundry industry,” Koenings said. Sales of businessezs in bankruptcy proceedings are oftejn structured where one company makes the initial bid foranother company’e assets. Under rules approved by the higher offers from third parties can be submitted ascompeting bids. The “stalking horse” arrangement helpse ensure that Grede receives the best value for its assets and alloww for offers that are best for the creditor s while preserving thebusiness operations, companyg management said.
Grede said that it has already receivedr inquiries from other parties that are interestefdin Grede’s production capacity. Koening said Grede expects the sale and relateds bidding process to move steadily through thecourt “We are deeply committed to doin everything necessary to put our compant on solid footing as the nation begins to rise out of the worsr economic conditions since the Greaft Depression,” he said. “Our customers very clearly want us to succeec and have been very Grede announced in May that it had laid off 81 employees from its foundrgy in Wauwatosa since the endof January. In the company revealed plans to close its foundrin Greenwood, S.C.