 
Court Approves $2.9 Million Sale of Benada's
Extrusion Equipment to Tubelite
October 2, 2012
by Penny Stacey, pstacey@glass.com
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida has approved a
motion by Benada Aluminum Products LLC to sell certain portions
of its extrusion equipment and related assets to Tubelite Inc. for
a purchase price of $2.9 million. The motion was made last month
as part of Benada's Chapter 11 bankruptcy
case.
Tubelite had emerged as the successful bidder after Benada issued
a notification of intent to sell the equipment in August, and 12
potential purchasers expressed interest. Among the others who bid
on the company were RL Best, Pries Enterprises, RKM Engineering
and Spectra Aluminum, with initial bids ranging between $1 million
and $2.5 million. After several rounds of bidding, Tubelite prevailed
"as the successful bidder to acquire the property"-coming
in just above RL Best's final bid of $2.8 million.
According to Benada's original motion, company officials "
determined that the sale of the property would be beneficial to
the estate … [and] that the purchase price is fair and reasonable."
Creditor Wells Fargo will receive 80 percent of the sale proceeds,
while the remaining 20 percent will be used by Benada "to continue
to fund its operations."
The sale includes the company's RL Best 2750/3000-Ton Hydraulic
Press; an RL Best handling system; a Granco Clark log heating furnace;
a Granco Clark hot log cutoff saw; a log saw to press billet transveyor;
a die oven; a Belco Reversing End Flow age oven with triple-lane
powered conveyors; any and all manuals related to operation, use
and maintenance of the extrusion line assets; and any and all unexpired
manufacturer's warranties with respect to the extrusion line assets.
According to documentation filed in the case,
the machinery was part of Florida Extruders International's 3000
Ton Press Equipment, which Benada acquired in June 2011.
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