Great American Group Forms Joint Venture to Auction Over $30 Million in Heavy Construction Equipment

Business Wire, June 28, 2004

WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. -- Liquidation of Major Canadian Pipeline Construction Firm Projected to be Largest in Years for North American Construction Industry

Great American Group, one of the nation's leading asset management firms, announced today that it has formed a joint venture with two other firms, one American and the other Canadian, to liquidate all the assets of one of Canada's oldest and largest pipeline construction firms.

Working with Rabin Worldwide of San Francisco, Calif., and CIACPCC, Inc., headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Great American will conduct a three-day live and online auction sale of hundreds of pieces of heavy construction equipment belonging to Marine Pipeline Construction Company of Canada.

The equipment, which ranges from tractors, dozers, trenchers and graders to excavators, generators, flatbed/utility trucks and pick-ups and SUVs, is expected to generate over $30 million in sales. The size and scope of the auction sale make it one of the largest of its kind for the construction industry in North America.

Also included in the auction -- to be held July 13-15 at Marine Pipeline's headquarters in Edmonton -- will be all of the company's office equipment and property. The property comprises 30 acres of land, with 25,000 square feet of office space and two maintenance buildings of approximately 10,000 square feet per building.

"We are delighted to have been selected to handle this liquidation, and believe that the auction sale will enable other construction companies and interested parties to acquire a wide array of high quality, heavy-duty construction equipment at very reasonable prices," said Mark Weitz, president of the Wholesale and Industrial Services division of Great American Group.

"Most of the items on sale will be from top-name national manufacturers such as Caterpillar, Kenworth, Linkbelt, Komatsu, Ford, Chevy, McKenzie and Allied," Weitz noted. "While some pieces are approximately five to six years old, all of the equipment is in very good to excellent condition," he added.

Founded in 1954, Marine Pipeline grew quickly over the next decades as Canada's oil and gas industry flourished. From its beginnings as an underwater pipeline construction specialist, the company soon evolved into a multi-faceted pipeline construction empire with a broad range of capabilities. In 1993, Marine was sold to Murphy Bros., Inc., one of the most successful large diameter pipeline construction companies in North America.

Serving clients in the wholesale, industrial and machinery and equipment industries for 30 years, Great American Group provides a full range of asset management services, including industrial auctions, industrial wind-down services, wholesale inventory liquidation services and industrial appraisal and valuation services. Headquartered in Woodland Hills, Calif., with regional offices in Chicago, Boston, New York and Atlanta, the company also has operating divisions that provide similar services for retail and consumer inventories and machinery and equipment.