Tri City Glass buys Oldcastle Green Bay

Tri City Glass & Door, Appleton, Wis.,bought Oldcastle Glass Green Bay Dec. 28, 2009, according to a release. The acquisition increases sales by 50 percent and the employee base to almost 100.

Tri City will honor the contracts that Oldcastle Green Bay customers have, and the projects will have uninterrupted service, according to a letter sent to customers and suppliersof Tri City. The Green Bay team will continue on in their current positions.

"Negotiations did not start until November 2009, and we finalized the deal just prior to Christmas," said Chuck Bender, president, Tri City Glass & Door. "We are not willing to disclose the transaction amount, but I can tell you that the transaction was good for both parties."

Tri Citydoes not produce glass, temper or insulate at any of its three facilities. The company is a distributor, contract glazier, retailer and auto glass service provider.It also sells and installs steel, wood, fiberglass and composite doors and hardware.

"The employees were offered positions at their same rate of pay and with full seniority as far as vacation pay goes," Bender said. "We have no big changes planned, just business as usual. The new Green Bay facility fits our business mold almost perfectly."

The question that stands out in this deal is how could a company like Tri City Glass have the position and equity to buy something like Oldcastle Glass Green Bay, said Steve Zurcher, president, St. George Glass & Window, Iron Mountain, Mich. The company buys Kawneer products and associated glass from Oldcastle Glass Green Bay.

"It shows the vulnerability of big corporations, especially in this economic turmoil," Zurcher said. "They often can't manage the mundane little things, and eventually the little things add up and bring them down or force liquidation. Seems that the big corporations, and the smallest companies have the least room to react to the fluid market, while those that swim the middle have more room to adapt to the changing tide. This is good news for those companies that are looking for value at the expense of those that need to liquidate at all costs. My history isn't that great, but I get the feeling something very similar happened during the Great Depression."

Oldcastle Glass did not respond to calls and e-mails for comment on the purchase.