NEWTON, Iowa, Nov. 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Maytag Corporation
(NYSE: MYG) announced today it expects to close the Florence, South Carolina,
laundry plant, early in the first quarter of 2006. The shutdown will impact
approximately 60 employees.
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"Closing a plant is never an easy decision," said Steve Ingham, Maytag
senior vice president - supply chain. "Unfortunately, we have too much
laundry manufacturing capacity and we need to reduce it."
Ingham said that the Florence plant closure had nothing to do with
employee performance. "Our Florence employees are a hard working and
dedicated group, but in today's highly competitive global marketplace, we can
no longer afford to keep underutilized plants open."
Today's announcement is part of Maytag's ongoing efforts to address its
manufacturing footprint and remove cost barriers to acceptable financial
performance. The company has stated that its excess manufacturing capacity
issues and related costs are concentrated in the laundry and floor care
product categories.
Besides Florence, Maytag has three other laundry manufacturing facilities
located in Arkansas, Illinois, and Iowa. Earlier this year, Maytag
concentrated its production of vertical-axis washers at its plant in Herrin,
Illinois, and dryers in Searcy, Arkansas.
Affected employees would be eligible to receive severance packages as well
as career counseling services. In addition, Maytag will be working with state
and local workforce development agencies to help Florence employees make the
transition to new employment.
Restructuring charges associated with the plant closing are expected to be
in the range of $40-$50 million, primarily for asset write-down and
accelerated depreciation. The cash portion of these charges is expected to be
approximately $10 million related to severance and fulfilling purchase
commitments.
Maytag Corporation is a $4.8 billion home and commercial appliance company
focused in North America and in targeted international markets. The
corporation's primary brands are Maytag(R), Hoover(R), Jenn-Air(R), Amana(R),
Dixie-Narco(R) and Jade(R).
Maytag Additional Information
This document includes statements that do not directly or exclusively
relate to historical facts. Such statements are "forward-looking statements"
within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section
21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These forward-looking statements
speak only as of this date and include statements regarding anticipated future
financial operating performance and results. These statements are based on
the current expectations of management of Maytag. There are a number of risks
and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from
the forward-looking statements included in this document. For example, with
respect to the transaction with Whirlpool (1) Maytag may be unable to obtain
shareholder approval required for the transaction; (2) conditions to the
closing of the transaction may not be satisfied or the merger agreement may be
terminated prior to closing; (3) Maytag may be unable to obtain the regulatory
approvals required to close the transaction, or required regulatory approvals
may delay the transaction or result in the imposition of conditions that could
have a material adverse effect on Maytag or cause the parties to abandon the
transaction; (4) Maytag may be unable to achieve cost-cutting goals or it may
take longer than expected to achieve those goals; (5) the transaction may
involve unexpected costs or unexpected liabilities; (6) the credit ratings of
Maytag or its subsidiaries may be different from what the parties expect; (7)
the businesses of Maytag may suffer as a result of uncertainty surrounding the
transaction; (8) the industry may be subject to future regulatory or
legislative actions that could adversely affect Maytag; and (9) Maytag may be
adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors.
Additional factors that may affect the future results of Maytag are set forth
in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), which are
available at http://www.maytagcorp.com . Maytag undertakes no obligation to
publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result
of new information, future events or otherwise.
Additional Information Relating to the Proposed Merger and Where to Find
It
Whirlpool and Maytag have filed a preliminary prospectus/proxy statement
with the SEC in connection with the proposed transaction. Investors are urged
to read the preliminary prospectus/proxy statement, and any other relevant
documents filed or to be filed by Whirlpool or Maytag, including the
definitive prospectus/proxy statement when available, because they contain or
will contain important information. The preliminary prospectus/proxy
statement is, and other documents filed by Whirlpool and Maytag with the SEC
are, available free of charge at the SEC's website ( http://www.sec.gov ) or
from Whirlpool by directing a request to Whirlpool Corporation, 2000 North
M-63, Mail Drop 2800, Benton Harbor, MI 49022-2692, Attention: Larry
Venturelli, Vice President, Investor Relations. Neither this communication
nor the preliminary prospectus/proxy statement constitutes an offer to sell or
the solicitation of an offer to buy Whirlpool common stock in any jurisdiction
outside the United States where such offer or issuance would be prohibited --
such an offer or issuance will only be made in accordance with the applicable
laws of such jurisdiction.
Whirlpool, Maytag and their respective directors, executive officers, and
other employees may be deemed to be participating in the solicitation of
proxies from Maytag stockholders in connection with the approval of the
proposed transaction. Information about Whirlpool's directors and executive
officers is available in Whirlpool's proxy statement, dated March 18, 2005,
for its 2005 annual meeting of stockholders. Information about Maytag's
directors and executive officers is available in Maytag's proxy statement,
dated April 4, 2005, for its 2005 annual meeting of stockholders. Additional
information about the interests of potential participants is included in the
preliminary prospectus/proxy statement Whirlpool and Maytag filed with the
SEC.
Media Contact: John Daggett
Maytag Corporate Communications
(641) 787-7711
john.daggett@maytag.com
SOURCE Maytag Corporation
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Related links:
http://www.maytagcorp.com
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CONTACT:
John Daggett of Maytag Corporate
Communications, +1-641-787-7711, john.daggett@maytag.com
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