Tower Automotive Arranges Financing For Its Milwaukee Frame Assembly Line

Autoparts Report, Oct 8, 2001

Tower Automotive, Inc. said that it successfully completed a $126 million lease financing for Tower's new Dodge Ram frame assembly line located in its Milwaukee facility. GE Capital's Structured Finance Unit and Philip Morris Capital Corp. provided the equity investment for the lease.

The multi-year contract to produce the frame was awarded to Tower Automotive by DaimlerChrysler in 1999 and is expected to be in operation for at least the next eight years.

The assembly line is highly advanced and makes use of many robot-controlled laser welding, piercing and component "pick-and-place" operations. The line is flexible and can accommodate model substitutions or alterations relatively easily, the company said.

Tower Automotive, Inc., produces a broad range of assemblies and modules for vehicle structures and suspension systems for the automotive manufacturers, including Ford, DaimlerChrysler, GM, Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Auto Alliance, Fiat, Kia, Hyundai, BMW and Volkswagen.

Products include body structural assemblies such as pillars and package trays, control arms, suspension links, engine cradles and full frame assemblies. The company is based in Grand Rapids, Mich., and has its corporate office in Minneapolis, Minn.