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Auto parts suppliers unite
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November 20, 1998: 8:16 a.m. ET
Hayes Lemmerz to buy CMI Int'l for $605M, to supply suspension systems
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Hayes Lemmerz International, the world's largest wheel manufacturer, agreed Friday to acquire CMI International, Inc., another automotive parts supplier, for $605 million.
Under terms of the deal, Hayes will pay $437 million in cash for CMI and assume about $168 million of debt.
The transaction, which will enable Hayes to begin selling entire suspension systems to car makers, is expected to close in early 1999 pending regulatory approval.
"CMI is a world-class supplier of brake, suspension, structural and other lightweight automotive components, and is a tremendous fit with Hayes Lemmerz," said Hayes Chairman and Chief Executive Ron Cucuz. "Together with CMI, the company is well positioned as a top corner module supplier and a leader in the growing lightweight aluminum and polymer components markets."
The combined company is expected to have sales of more than $2.6 billion, with 36 plants and more than 15,000 employees worldwide.
Once the buyout is complete, Hayes said it will name Ray H. Witt, chairman of CMI, as a board member of Hayes Lemmerz International.
"We are pleased to be joining the leading manufacturer of world-class wheels and can see the synergies of Hayes' brake products with our corner suspension module components," Witt said. "Our complementary strengths will ensure that we continue to be market leaders in our respective industries while providing a more complete package to our customers."
CMI, of Southfield, Mich., is an independent supplier of aluminum, iron, and advanced polymer components. The company had sales of $561 million in fiscal 1998.
Hayes Lemmerz International, with sales of more than $2 billion, supplies wheels, brake drums, and rotors for the automotive and commercial highway markets in North and South America, Europe, and Asia.
Hayes is 32 percent owned by Joseph Littlejohn & Levy, an investment company.
Shares of Hayes (HAZ) ended down 3/16 Thursday at 27-13/16 on the New York Stock Exchange. 
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