This is to notify you that SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD. (President and Representative Director: Teiji Koge, hereinafter called "Sekisui") is restructuring and reforming the pipeline rehabilitation business in the United States of America, and that the construction company HEITKAMP, INC. (hereinafter called HEITKAMP) has been transferred by Sale to US constructions company, Michels Corporation on May 31.
１．Background and History
Sekisui’s Urban Infrastructure and Environmental Products Company established SEKISUI SPR AMERICAS, LLC. in August 2005, and thus started its pipe rehabilitation business in America. In December 2007, Sekisui bought HEITKAMP to roll out a broad business from pipe inspection to installation centering on the northeast coast, and so expanded business by unifying our construction functions in America.
Nevertheless, due to the stagnation of incoming order prices caused by fierce competitions, in recent years the ongoing situation has been one of calculating business losses.
２．Summary of the Structural Reforms and Future Developments
The business has been undergoing continuous restructuring and reforms, but to further improve profitability, drastic countermeasures were judged to be necessary. Through the current handover, all shares in HEITKAMP has been handed to the Michels Corporation., and Sekisui will withdraw completely from the construction business in North America.
In the future, Sekisui will specialize in businesses centering on the sale of SPR™ method*-related products, of which we proudly lead the market in Japan as well as our pressure pipe CIPP products, NordiPipe™ and NordiForce™, through SEKISUI SPR AMERICAS, LLC. and thus promote business in the North American region.
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*SPR™ method： |
A method of manufacturing pipes while by winding a hard PVC profile into a spiral inside of an existing pipe, and then injecting a special back-filling material into the annular space between the existing pipes, thus rehabilitating technology for the aged pipe. |
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３．Impact on Business Results
This has been incorporated into the business results plan for FY2016.
Reference
-Summary of Company to Be Handed Over (Before Handover)
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Company Name: HEITKAMP, INC. |
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Address: 99 Callender Road, Watertown, Connecticut, 06795 U.S.A. |
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Representative: Director and CEO Minoru Momota |
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Capital: US＄10 thousand |
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Business Details: Rehabilitation and maintenance of water and sewage works, and pipeline examinations and diagnoses |
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Established: December 2007 |
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Sales Amount: US＄37.6 million (FY2015) |
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No. of Employees: Approx. 120 (as of March 2016) |
-Summary of Recipient Company (Unlisted)
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Company Name: Michels Corporation. |
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Address: 817 W. Main St., Brownsville, WI 53006-0128, USA |
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Established: 1959 |
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No. of Employees: Approx. 5,000 |
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Company Summary: US constructions company -Ranked 33rd in the “2015 ENR top 400 contractors list” |
Disclaimer
This press release may contain forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements due to changes in global economic, business, competitive market and regulatory factors.