Furon Sells 3 Assets, Gains $28 Million Toward Debt

Furon Co. announced Wednesday that it has completed three separate asset sales worth a total of $28 million and that it will use the proceeds to reduce long-term debt.

Furon, a manufacturer of seals and plastic products, said it had sold its Reeves Rubber Division in Albertsville, Ala., to the British rubber company BTR. The Laguna Niguel-based company also has negotiated the sale and lease-back of nine industrial facilities around the country.

In addition, Furon sold a South Carolina components factory, along with one of its product lines, to the French firm Carbon. The other three products from that facility will now be produced at a Furon plant in Los Alamitos.

Furon Chairman Peter Churm said the switch would increase employment in Los Alamitos by 10 to 15 people.

Churm added that the asset sales were part of a “continuing process” aimed at reducing long-term debt, which stands at $114 million after the three transactions.

The Reeves Rubber unit had revenues of about $10 million but was being battered by foreign competition and “didn’t have much of a future,” Churm said. BTR will use the facility to manufacture its own rubber molding products.

The plants and land being sold and leased back were acquired by Furon through various acquisitions, Churm said.

Churm declined to say how much of the $28 million total had come from each transaction.