Company Overview
•The Company is a $200 million producer and distributor of construction materials, with more than 20 locations in the Midwest and Southeast.
•Diversified operations included a deep-water port facility, rail loading/unloading facility and agricultural holdings.
Engagement Overview
The Company made significant capital investments in long-term strategic assets, financed largely with term debt. Sales declined 50% shortly thereafter, resulting in significant operating losses and the inability to fund required debt service.
Fort Dearborn was initially engaged to assist the Company with an assessment of its strategic alternatives, together with the preparation of a turnaround and debt reduction plan.
§During FDP’s due diligence review of the Company’s financial records, we identified several accounting issues and irregularities including:
–Overstated profits due to improper inventory valuation methods, and understated bad debts due to poor controls and lack of consistent policies;
–Distorted divisional profitability due to improper allocation of costs among divisions; and
–Overstatement of accounts receivable to inflate the Company’s borrowing base.
Poor performance and the inability of ownership / management to implement the debt reduction and turnaround plan resulted in the bank group insisting that FDP be hired as Chief Restructuring Officer.
Results
FDP corrected Company accounting issues and revised financial statement forecasts and determined cash flow required to support ongoing operations.
FDP created a detailed tactical plan to significantly reduce debt and return the Company to sustainable profitability.
Fort Dearborn successfully prevented ownership / management from diverting collateral from creditors during the insolvency period.
The Company’s assets were sold in a bankruptcy section 363 sale for the benefit of all creditors.