CHARLOTTE, Mich., June 13, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Spartan Motors,
Inc. (NASDAQ: SPAR) ("Spartan" or the "Company"), the North
American leader in specialty vehicle manufacturing and assembly for
the commercial and retail vehicle industries, as well as for the
emergency response and recreational vehicle markets, today
announced it has purchased the assets of General Truck Body
("GTB") and will begin operating a production facility
located in Montebello, California.
Going forward, the facility will be used to manufacture and
assemble custom aluminum and composite-side truck bodies,
refrigerated trucks, stake body trucks, curtain side and moving
vans, last mile delivery vehicles and upfits, and other Work Driven
Design™ vocational solutions across GVWR Classes 1-7. GTB
joins Spartan's Fleet Vehicles and Services ("FVS") business
unit. It will go-to-market under the Utilimaster
brand.
The purchase of General Truck Body assets immediately expands
Spartan Motors' truck body manufacturing operations into
California while enhancing
refrigerated vehicle production capabilities and grants customers
access to additional truck and van body types. Augmenting
Spartan's recent East Coast expansion, the addition of this
Southern California manufacturing
and assembly facility increases Spartan and Utilimaster's product
portfolio and effectively grants customers efficient,
cost-competitive build-and-ship capabilities from
coast-to-coast.
"We are proud to welcome General Truck Body employees and
customers to the Spartan family," said Daryl Adams, President and Chief Executive
Officer of Spartan Motors. "This facility effectively
provides Spartan and Utilimaster with a West Coast truck body
operation that expands our footprint to better serve current and
prospective customers in the region. We've bolstered our East
Coast presence over the past several months, and this West Coast
facility means we can now competitively sell and service commercial
and retail vehicles across the entire U.S. We expect the
transaction to be accretive on an annualized basis in 2020."
Spartan FVS, by way of its Utilimaster, Spartan Upfit Services,
and Strobes-R-Us™ go-to-market brands, is uniquely positioned to
provide comprehensive vehicle and upfit solutions across the
spectrum of vehicles in GVWR Classes 1-7. For customers of
all sizes, across all commercial and retail vocations, specialty
service segments, and last-mile delivery markets in particular,
Spartan provides a convenient and cost-effective single source
supply base for customer-specific vehicle solutions. Spartan
FVS and its brands are leaders in manufacturing and assembly
for global fleets, regional commercial and retail vehicles, and
have specialized expertise in the areas of truck and van body
assembly, specialty service vehicle manufacturing and
customization, and cargo van and governmental fleet upfit.
The business is committed to holistic after-sale service and
customer support by providing a comprehensive approach to
aftermarket parts supply, vehicle refurbishment, and field service
repairs and upgrades.
"As we welcome GTB to the Spartan and Utilimaster family, it's
my hope that Spartan's size, stability, and commitment to long-term
sustainable profitable growth will reassure customers and employees
alike. We are committed to the location and to providing our
customers with an even broader portfolio of solutions so that
Spartan and Utilimaster can effectively become a one-stop shop for
commercial and retail vehicle customers. GTB's facility,
product set, and its talented people help us do just that,"
concluded Adams.
About Spartan Motors
Spartan Motors, Inc. is the North
American leader in specialty vehicle manufacturing and assembly for
the commercial and retail vehicle industries (including last-mile
delivery, specialty service, and vocation-specific upfit segments),
as well as for the emergency response and recreational vehicle
markets. The Company is organized into three core business
segments, including Spartan Fleet Vehicles and Services, Spartan
Emergency Response, and Spartan Specialty Vehicles. Today,
its family of brands also include Spartan Authorized Parts, Spartan
Factory Service Centers, Utilimaster®, Strobes-R-Us™, Smeal, Ladder
Tower™, and UST®. Spartan Motors and its go-to-market
brands are well known in their respective industries for quality,
durability, aftermarket product support, and first-to-market
innovation. The Company employs approximately 2,300 associates, and
operates facilities in Michigan,
Indiana, Pennsylvania, South
Carolina, Florida,
Missouri, California, Nebraska, South
Dakota; Saltillo, Mexico;
and Lima, Peru. Spartan reported
sales of $816 million in 2018.
Learn more about Spartan Motors at www.spartanmotors.com.
This release contains several forward-looking statements that
are not historical facts, including statements concerning our
expectations regarding the future performance of this California facility and business and its
effect on our business, strategic position, financial projections,
financial strength, future plans, objectives, and the performance
of our products and operations. These statements can be identified
by words such as "believe," "expect," "intend," "potential,"
"future," "may," "will," "should," and similar expressions
regarding future expectations. These forward-looking statements
involve various known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and
assumptions that are difficult to predict with regard to timing,
extent, and likelihood. Therefore, actual performance and results
may materially differ from what may be expressed or forecasted in
such forward-looking statements. Factors that could contribute to
these differences include difficulties we may encounter in
integrating this business with Spartan's existing business;
operational and other complications that may arise affecting the
implementation of our plans and business objectives; continued
pressures caused by economic conditions; issues unique to
government contracting, such as competitive bidding processes,
qualification requirements, and delays or changes in funding;
changes in our relationships with major customers, suppliers, or
other business partners; changes in the demand or supply of
products within our markets or raw materials needed to manufacture
those products; and changes in laws and regulations affecting our
business. Other factors that could affect outcomes are set
forth in our Annual Report on Form 10-K and other filings we make
with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which are
available at www.sec.gov or our website. All forward-looking
statements in this release are qualified by this paragraph.
Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking
statements as a prediction of actual results. We undertake no
obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements in
this release, whether as a result of new information, future
events, or otherwise.
CONTACT:
Investors:
Juris Pagrabs Group Treasurer, Director of Investor Relations
Spartan Motors, Inc.
Juris.Pagrabs@spartanmotors.com
(517)997-3862
Media:
Samara Hamilton
Corporate Director of Marketing and Communications
Spartan Motors, Inc.
Samara.Hamilton@spartanmotors.com
(517)997-3860
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SOURCE Spartan Motors, Inc.