Toledo's Dana will close 8 factories and eliminate retiree health care

11/9/2006

Dana Corp., Toledo s largest company, today revealed a massive restructuring plan that includes shutting eight more factories and eliminating retiree health care.

The moves are necessary to help the automotive supplier cut costs and make it leaner and smaller to be financial successful when it emerges from its Chapter 11 bankruptcy, filed in March, the company said.

Chief Executive Mike Burns told employees in a letter, These changes are neither easy nor pleasant. They involve sacrifices by all Dana stakeholders.

The measures include closing another eight plants in North America and downsizing at three others, on top of eight it announced a year ago it would shutter and another group of factories it previously has said it will sell. The locations of the latest closings were not revealed.

The firm said it would eliminate the firm s retiree health care benefits for current and future employees and will modify its pension program. It also is reducing its corporate administrative costs and renegotiating some customer contracts, possibly with higher prices, to allow it to recoup its costs.

Mr. Burns said the actions should result in savings and profit margin improvements of $405 million to $540 million.

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