Woodbridge Foam Corporation Business Report up until FY ended Dec. 31, 2009
Business Highlights
Recent Years
-In Nov. 2007, the Company and Intier Automotive Seating partnered to introduce BioFoam seat cushions in the Ford "Escape" launching in 2008, with the urethane foam cushions being supplied by the Company and the final seat assembly being performed by Intier.
-In May 2007, Johnson Controls joined with Proseat (a joint venture between Recticel and the Company) to set up a new manufacturing joint venture for the production of molded foam seating cushions in Slovakia and Poland. The two plants are located in Lucenec, Slovakia and Zory, Poland. Johnson Controls will hold a majority 65% stake in the joint venture with Proseat holding the remaining 35%. In Slovakia, the joint venture will use the existing manufacturing capacity at the Johnson Controls plant in Lucenec. The new plant in Poland will be operational in November 2007.
-In Sep. 2006, the Company and Recticel (Belgium) decided to extend their cooperation further by integrating Woodbrige's United Kingdom molded foam activities in Proseat. The present joint venture between RecTicel (70%) and the Company (30%) - Proseat is responsible for the production and marketing of seat cushions in molded foam for the European automotive industry. Proseat is a market leader in Europe with 6 production plants distributed over 4 countries ( Belgium, Germany, France and the Czech Republic).
-In May 2006, a new joint venture in India was formed. The venture is called Sheela Woodbridge Urethanes Pvt.Ltd. and will pursue business opportunities for molded polyurethane foam and foam-in-place products in the Indian market.
-In Sep. 2005, the Company announced the formation of a new joint venture in China with GSK Corp. Wuhan Woodbridge GSK Form Co., Ltd. will start production of formed seat for Honda, Peugeot, Nissan and Jaing Ling.
Acquisitions
-In 2008, Proseat (joint venture between Recticel S.A. (51%) and the Company (49%)) has signed an agreement for the takeover of all the shares of Indepol, a Spanish moulded foam manufacturer located near Barcelona. In January 2005, Proseat acquired a 25% interest in Indepol. By purchasing the remaining 75% of the shares, Proseat has now increased its stake in Indepol from 25% to 100%. Indepol manufactures moulded foam seat components for the automotive industry (Seat, GM and Ford) and has an annual turnover of EUR 35 million and a workforce of 400. (From a press release on Jul 7, 2008)Contract
-In Oct. 2008, the Company announced the introduction of BioFoam seat cushioning in several Fiat vehicles assembled in Brazil, including the "Palio", "Strada", "Uno", "Siena", "Idea" and "Punto", and also in Iveco trucks. BioFoam is plant-based polyurethane foam solution for automotive applications. (From a press release on Oct 14, 2008)-In Nov. 2007, the Company and Intier Automotive Seating partnered to introduce BioFoam seat cushions in the Ford "Escape" launching in 2008, with the urethane foam cushions being supplied by the Company and the final seat assembly being performed by Intier.
Joint Ventures
-In Nov. 2007, the Company and Inoac Corp., a polyurethane foam supplier, announced to establish four joint venture companies in North America. Inoac will invest in four companies of Woodbridge in North America as early as Dec. 31, 2007 to establish fifty-fifty joint ventures. While Inoac will make 50% investments in the Company's three companies in Texas and one in Mexico, the Group company will make a 50% investment in Kyushu Inoac Co., Ltd., Yukuhashi City, Fukuoka Prefecture.-In May 2007, Johnson Controls joined with Proseat (a joint venture between Recticel and the Company) to set up a new manufacturing joint venture for the production of molded foam seating cushions in Slovakia and Poland. The two plants are located in Lucenec, Slovakia and Zory, Poland. Johnson Controls will hold a majority 65% stake in the joint venture with Proseat holding the remaining 35%. In Slovakia, the joint venture will use the existing manufacturing capacity at the Johnson Controls plant in Lucenec. The new plant in Poland will be operational in November 2007.
-In Sep. 2006, the Company and Recticel (Belgium) decided to extend their cooperation further by integrating Woodbrige's United Kingdom molded foam activities in Proseat. The present joint venture between RecTicel (70%) and the Company (30%) - Proseat is responsible for the production and marketing of seat cushions in molded foam for the European automotive industry. Proseat is a market leader in Europe with 6 production plants distributed over 4 countries ( Belgium, Germany, France and the Czech Republic).
-In May 2006, a new joint venture in India was formed. The venture is called Sheela Woodbridge Urethanes Pvt.Ltd. and will pursue business opportunities for molded polyurethane foam and foam-in-place products in the Indian market.
-In Sep. 2005, the Company announced the formation of a new joint venture in China with GSK Corp. Wuhan Woodbridge GSK Form Co., Ltd. will start production of formed seat for Honda, Peugeot, Nissan and Jaing Ling.
New Company
-In May 2006, the Company established a new commercial office in Tokyo, Japan. The establishment of this office supports its growing activities with Japanese based OEM's.R&D
Product Development
GreenLite-In Jan. 2009, the Company has announced a new environmental-friendly, low mass automotive foam GreenLite. GreenLite applications include seat frames, seat cushions, and headliners. (From a press release on Jan. 12, 2009)
BioFoam
-In Jan. 2008, the the Company announced the most extensive interior product line offering the industry's highest levels of "Green" polyurethane foams, BioFoam. This earth-friendly solution for a full line-up of automotive interior applications includes; seat cushions, seat fabric composites, head restraints, arm rests, occupant protection components, trim cover laminates and overhead systems. Over the next 3 years Woodbridge targets BioFoam's Green Polyol inclusion to reach; 30% for overhead components, occupant protection foams, seat cushions, and the 50% mark for head restraints. Several vehicles launching in 2008 will feature BioFoam products. In cooperation with Magna, the recently announced 2009 Ford "Escape" is one of the latest examples. (From a press release on Jan. 14, 2008)