J. L. French: a victim of the times

摘要

J. L. French is the latest in a long line of Tier 1 suppliers to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in recent months. John Mortimer reports. The fact that J. L. French, a major high-pressure die-cast aluminium Tier 1 parts supplier to Ford Motor Company with operations in Witham, Essex, and Presteigne, Wales, was put into the hands of administrators on 10 February is a further sign of the aggressive price and cost structure that is pervading the world's automotive industry. The UK company's US parent, J. L. French Automotive Castings Inc. of Sheboygan, Wisconsin, earlier reached agreement with major creditors on a significant debt restructuring through a voluntary Chapter 11 filing. Following the US filing, J. L. French Automotive Castings continues "business as usual" at its operations at Sheboygan, Glasgow, Kentucky, and Etxebarria, Vizcaya, Spain. At the same time it chose to offload the UK operations, claiming the parent company could no longer provide funding for the UK business.