Laguna Hills’ Voxel to Sell Off Operations

Struggling Voxel said Friday that it plans to sell off its operations after failing to work out a plan to reorganize itself under protection of federal bankruptcy court.

Nanette Sanders, a lawyer for the Laguna Hills company, said creditors refused to accept the company’s plan to reorganize itself under the direction of Alan Wolfe, its chief executive. Monday, a Santa Ana bankruptcy court judge ordered the company into a court proceeding normally used to liquidate assets and appointed a trustee to oversee the process, Sanders said.

The company’s work force--about 20 employees including Wolfe--was terminated last week, Sanders said. She noted, however, that the trustee, Thomas H. Casey, apparently intends to operate the company while searching for a buyer. He is negotiating to rehire four or five engineers who understand its technology for creating three-dimensional X-rays of the human body.

Casey couldn’t be reached for comment.

Voxel tried unsuccessfully for 10 years to commercialize the technology. It lost $6 million last year alone.

Its financial condition turned critical this year after the company lost a $1.9-million judgment to General Scanning Inc., which had a contract to develop a product using Voxel technology.

The Massachusetts company said it worked up a prototype but Voxel didn’t pay for engineering services. General Scanning tried to persuade Voxel to give it rights to its technology but Voxel refused.

After failing to work out a plan to pay the judgment, Voxel filed a petition to reorganize under federal bankruptcy laws.

Sanders said General Scanning, now a big creditor, had objected to the company’s plan under Wolfe’s management to borrow money to fund its efforts to reorganize itself.

Wolfe had planned to seek new investors and push for commercializing the technology by next year.

Officials for General Scanning couldn’t be reached for comment.