Chainsaw Repair

Part 6

Growing Agribusiness in the 1970s
When Winton Blount returned to the company in 1974 and assumed his former position as president and chairperson, he decided that it was time to determine the future direction of the firm. Taking advice from both Blount management and his brother Houston, Winton decided that the company would not become a conglomerate with operations in a variety of unrelated fields but rather focus solely on the construction and agribusiness industries. Since the company was already well established in the construction industry, Winton immediately turned his attention to expanding its agribusiness operations. In 1976, Blount, Inc. purchased Modern Farm Systems, a manufacturer and distributor of grain bins and metal farm buildings. With facilities in Iowa, Indiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania, the acquisition enabled Blount, Inc. to quickly set up a comprehensive system to process, handle, and store grain.

In order to develop its agribusiness operations, Blount Inc. purchased York Foundry & Engine Work in 1977. Located in York, Nebraska, the company manufactured and distributed such items as bucket elevators and belt conveyors used to handle feeds, fertilizers, grains, and various other bulk materials. A further acquisition during the same year involved Redex Industries of Elm Creek, Nebraska, another manufacturer of materials handling equipment. The third purchase of that year was Mix-Mill Manufacturing Company of Bluffton, Indiana, a maker of different types of farm equipment used to process feed for cattle, poultry, and hogs. These acquisitions, in combination with increased grain production during the mid-1970s, led to record sales for the company; by 1979, Blount's agribusiness operations made up 45 percent of its operating income.

Part 8

In 1987, although he remained the board's chairperson, Winton Blount decided to decrease the time he spent in managing the day-to-day operations of the company. He promoted his son, Winton Blount III, to the position of vice-chairperson and gave him the primary responsibility of supervising the company's construction business. Having previously been the head of Blount's international construction operations, Winton Blount III seemed a natural choice. Yet from the very beginning of the younger Blount's tenure, the company's performance began to suffer. Washington Steel Corporation was sold off, in spite of its turning a profit during one of the most difficult periods in the steel industry. A $100 million, 80 megawatts cogeneration project located in Pennsylvania landed in court following a dispute between Blount and Schuykill Energy Resources. Problems with the company's handling of a $150 million office complex for AT&T in Chicago also gave rise to litigation. Other construction projects in which the company lost control or entered into contract terms that were unfavorable led to declining revenues and profitability. The younger Blount was asked to vacate his position as vice-chairperson, and his father returned to turn the company around. By the end of fiscal 1990, however, revenues had dropped from over $1 billion to $683 million; revenues for the construction operations alone declined from over $600 million to $348 million.

The early 1990s were a period of disruption and realignment for the company. William R. Van Sant, president and chief executive officer of Blount from December 1990 to October 1992, suddenly resigned, creating a large gap in management. Van Sant had helped the company shift its focus to a more diversified mixture of manufacturing equipment and construction operations. John M. Panettiere, a management expert with considerable experience in the auto industry, was appointed president and chief operating officer, and he immediately began to help Winton Blount iron out the company's problems.

Part 10

Blount ended 1996 with 4,400 employees and earnings of $55.2 million on revenues of $649.3 million. Blount's Sporting Equipment Group accounted for $147.1 million of sales in 1996, producing operating income of $19.8 million. Group sales were doubled by the $112 million purchase of Federal Cartridge Company from St. Paul, Minnesota-based Pentair, Inc. in November 1997. Blount picked up the ammo manufacturer as part of a strategy to round out its sporting equipment brand offerings, which then included Simmons, RCBS, CCI, Speer, Ram-Line, Weaver, and Orbex. Pentair was unloading the munitions business to gain money for acquisitions related to its core businesses: electrical and electronic enclosures, professional tools and equipment, and water products. Operating profit at Federal Cartridge had fallen from $20 million to less than $2 million in 1995--the results of a stockpiling effort the year before among gun users fearful of new gun control regulations. Federal Cartridge employed 900 workers and had sales of $130 million in 1995.

Blount's long-term prospects prompted the Fort Worth, Texas-based Bass group to acquire a 5.3 percent stake in the company in the summer of 1996. This was soon raised to 8.2 percent. In April 1999, the company agreed to be acquired by a unit of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. for $1.16 billion. Blount issued $825 million in debt, including $325 million in junk bonds, to finance the leveraged buyout. Lehman and Blount's existing management owned 90 percent of shares after the transaction, with existing shareholders holding the rest. The Blount family owned 63 percent of shares before the deal. Blount executives had discussed selling the company to a number of bidders, but few other than Lehman were interested acquiring all of Blount's operations.

Wow that's alot of good info Philbert, I hope you were able to copy and paste all that haha.

Interesting about Snap-On  owning Windsor, good quality tool company if not the best. Here's a pic of my first Snap On chest I bought in the early 1970's before I went logging. Still holds alot of my tools today. Alot better quality then my MasterCraft chest I got in my garage. The drawers in the Snap On open all the way out mot hiding any tools in the back of the drawer. Those almost 50 year old drawer tracks still work perfect.

I'm still in the dark about how Sandvik was able to sue Windsor on that patent infringement. And when they sold off Windsor.
If you could dig that info up I'd gladly appreciate it. Thanks.

Holy crap lit a fire under somebody with some info  .  Thanks for sharing all of this Phil.