Automotive Engineering

We have considerable experience in automotive engineering and supply chain management, based on our longstanding relationship with Detroit-based turnaround and advisory firm ConwayMackenzie and the considerable experience of Principal David Bryan in senior executive positions in the UK, USA and Germany with Mayflower Corporation, a leading component manufacturer to many of the world’s leading original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). Additionally, Catalin Nichifor, Managing Director in Romania, was for many years the CFO of Lear in Eastern Europe. We have experience in operations, manufacturing control systems, finance and across the range of automotive industry protocols. We have worked for OEMs, Ford and General Motors (GM), in distressed supplier evaluation and support and for a wide range of supply chain manufacturers from Tier 1 to Tier 3 in the UK, Western and Eastern Europe. 

We were engaged by Ford Motor Company to advise on potential insolvency issues of Collins & Aikman’s European subsidiaries and to oversee cash and liquidity issues whilst negotiations took place with W L Ross & Co and its IAC venture to purchase certain companies from administration. We also acted as advisor to IAC in due diligence and recommended entities to purchase. We subsequently worked for GM in work-out and cash collections relating to liquidation of certain of the subsidiaries. 

We were engaged by Dura Automotive to act as restructuring advisors of its European subsidiaries whist the parent company prepared to file for Chapter 11 in the USA. We managed liquidity issues and advised on insolvency risks to keep the European business out of formal processes whilst the parent company entered Chapter 11 and subsequently was sold.

We were CRO of Cloyes Gear and Products in Germany, improving quality control in manufacturing to enable the business to become profitable, avoiding insolvency and priming the business for sale. We were also CRO to Jac Products in Germany and Portugal, avoiding an insolvency through closer working capital management.

We have provided interim management on underperforming businesses and acted as CRO and in liquidity management to avoid value-destructive insolvencies. We have a deep knowledge of industry protocols and the knowledge and value of leverage in a just-in-time often sole-supplier industry, where a supplier insolvency can stop OEM production. We have credibility with both suppliers and OEMs in seeking optimum solutions to distressed suppliers, either through operational improvements, liquidity management or OEM negotiation.