B F Goodrich Co

B.F. Goodrich Co., the largest U.S. maker of aircraft landing gear, said Chief Financial Officer Laurence Chapman will leave by the end of the year and named Ulrich Schmidt as his successor. Chapman, 51, joined Goodyear as part of the company's 1997 acquisition of Rohr Inc. and has served in the position since March 1999. Chapman said he isn't leaving for another job and said he wants to spend time with his family.

Shares of B.F. Goodrich Co. rose 8.7% after it agreed to sell its chemicals business to a private investor group led by AEA Investors Inc. The buyers of BF Goodrich Performance Materials include affiliates of DLJ Merchant Banking Partners and a unit of Germany's Deutsche Bank. They agreed to pay $1.2 billion in cash and $200 million in debt securities issued by the new company and repayable over 10 1/2 years, Goodrich said.

B.F. Goodrich Co., the largest U.S. maker of aircraft landing gear, said Chief Financial Officer Laurence Chapman will leave by the end of the year and named Ulrich Schmidt as his successor. Chapman, 51, joined Goodyear as part of the company's 1997 acquisition of Rohr Inc. and has served in the position since March 1999. Chapman said he isn't leaving for another job and said he wants to spend time with his family.

The survivors of 69 of the passengers aboard a Mexicana jetliner that crashed into a mountain west of Mexico City last March have filed suit against the airline, claiming the crash was the result of negligence. In addition to Mexicana, the Los Angeles Superior Court complaint also cites Boeing Co., which manufactured the 727-200 airliner; B. F. Goodrich Co.

B.F. Goodrich Co., the former tire maker turned aerospace and specialty chemicals company, reached an agreement to acquire Coltec Industries Inc., the leading maker of aircraft controls and landing gear systems. Charlotte, N.C.-based Coltec, which also makes industrial sealing products for aerospace and general industrial markets, had sales of about $1.31 billion last year and has about $608 million in long-term debt, Goodrich said. Goodrich has annual sales of about $5.5 billion.

B.F. Goodrich Co., the largest maker of military-airplane landing gear, said it reached a 3 1/2-year agreement with the aerospace union that represents 1,525 of its workers. The contract increases wages by 2% in February 2000 and 2.25% in February 2001 and 2002. The workers, represented by the International Assn. of Machinists & Aerospace Workers, will also receive a lump sum of $1,500 by July 23.

B.F. Goodrich Co., the tire maker turned aerospace company, said it will close four plants and eliminate 775 jobs, or 4.6% of its work force, as part of a cost-savings plan related to the 1997 acquisition of Rohr Inc. The company said it will take a fourth-quarter charge of about $7 million, or 9 cents a share, to pay for the moves, which it said will save about $10 million a year beginning in 2000. Richfield, Ohio-based Goodrich also said its profit for 1998 will exceed $3.

B.F. Goodrich Co. and Rockwell International Inc., makers of airplane equipment, said they formed a maintenance alliance they hope will help stabilize earnings during an expected slump in aircraft production. Rockwell Collins, which specializes in instrumentation and in-flight entertainment systems, will work with Goodrich Aviation Services to provide one-stop maintenance and repair services to airlines worldwide, the companies said.

B.F. Goodrich Co. and Rockwell International Inc., makers of airplane equipment, said they formed a maintenance alliance they hope will help stabilize earnings during an expected slump in aircraft production. Rockwell Collins, which specializes in instrumentation and in-flight entertainment systems, will work with Goodrich Aviation Services to provide one-stop maintenance and repair services to airlines worldwide, the companies said.

B.F. Goodrich Co., the largest maker of military-airplane landing gear, said it reached a 3 1/2-year agreement with the aerospace union that represents 1,525 of its workers. The contract increases wages by 2% in February 2000 and 2.25% in February 2001 and 2002. The workers, represented by the International Assn. of Machinists & Aerospace Workers, will also receive a lump sum of $1,500 by July 23.

B.F. Goodrich Co., the tire maker turned aerospace company, said it will close four plants and eliminate 775 jobs, or 4.6% of its work force, as part of a cost-savings plan related to the 1997 acquisition of Rohr Inc. The company said it will take a fourth-quarter charge of about $7 million, or 9 cents a share, to pay for the moves, which it said will save about $10 million a year beginning in 2000. Richfield, Ohio-based Goodrich also said its profit for 1998 will exceed $3.

B.F. Goodrich Co., the former tire maker turned aerospace and specialty chemicals company, reached an agreement to acquire Coltec Industries Inc., the leading maker of aircraft controls and landing gear systems. Charlotte, N.C.-based Coltec, which also makes industrial sealing products for aerospace and general industrial markets, had sales of about $1.31 billion last year and has about $608 million in long-term debt, Goodrich said. Goodrich has annual sales of about $5.5 billion.

One week after initial merger talks broke down, BFGoodrich Co. agreed Monday to acquire Rohr Inc. in a $1.3-billion deal that increases consolidation among the second tier of aerospace companies. Chula Vista, Calif.-based Rohr makes engine accessories such as nacelles--the aerodynamic structures that surround an aircraft's engines--and the pylons that attach them to planes.

Shares of B.F. Goodrich Co. rose 8.7% after it agreed to sell its chemicals business to a private investor group led by AEA Investors Inc. The buyers of BF Goodrich Performance Materials include affiliates of DLJ Merchant Banking Partners and a unit of Germany's Deutsche Bank. They agreed to pay $1.2 billion in cash and $200 million in debt securities issued by the new company and repayable over 10 1/2 years, Goodrich said.

B. F. Goodrich Co. said Tuesday that it plans to sell its 50% interest in Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Co. to an investor group for more than $225 million in cash plus warrants. The tire operation is being acquired by Clayton & Dubilier Inc., the New York-based investment firm that took Uniroyal Inc. private in 1985 after an unsuccessful takeover attempt by corporate raider Carl C. Icahn.

Business Accelerates: Also on the tire front: Stanton hot rod builder and custom wheel manufacturer Boyd Coddington has signed a marketing agreement with BF Goodrich that will give his expanding business group a new boost in visibility. BF Goodrich tires, made by Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Co. in Akron, Ohio, become the official tires of the Coddington Cos. while Goodrich will endorse the custom cars built at Hot Rods by Boyd and the aluminum wheels manufactured by Boyd's Wheels.

Advanced Photonix Inc., a Camarillo producer of photodetector devices and other electronic products, has received an order to provide components of a new B.F. Goodrich system that remotely measures and records the fuel level of aircraft wing tanks. To operate the system, ground crew members simply aim a pointer at a device inside the tanks. The system eliminates manual operations that can take as long as an hour, Advanced Photonix said.