Manufacturing Lenoir, NC, June 12, 2006--Broyhill Furniture Industries, a subsidiary of St. Louis, Missouri based Furniture Brands International, announced the closing of its Pacemaker case goods manufacturing facility located in Lenoir, North Carolina.
The Pacemaker plant is a 522,000 square foot facility and employs approximately 700 people. This closing will entail the elimination of all salaried and hourly positions. The plant will cease manufacturing operations in August, 2006.
Furniture Brands estimates the restructuring, asset impairment and severance charges associated with this closure will total approximately $5.1 million ($3.3 million net of income tax benefit), or 7 cents per diluted common share. We estimate 1 cent of these charges will be taken in the second quarter of 2006 and the remainder will be taken in the third quarter.
Furniture Brands International is one of America's largest residential furniture companies. The company produces, sources and markets its products under six of the best-known brand names in the industry--Broyhill, Lane, Thomasville, Henredon, Drexel Heritage and Maitland-Smith.
