Auctions are scheduled for August at two plants that were the production centers for injection molder Mag Inc., which closed without warning in May.
Officials for Mag and SabreTech Inc., the Bingham Farms, Mich., holding company that owned Mag, did not respond to requests for comment. The Mag plants are located in Martinsville, Ind., and El Paso, Texas.
Employees of the El Paso facility, who did not want to be named because of continuing legal issues with the firm, said they did not know anything was wrong until they turned up for work one day and found the doors locked and a sign on the door stating the company had closed.
Mag's 50 Texas employees have hired an attorney, workers said, and are seeking a severance package as well as access to their 401(k) funds.
Mag's suppliers and customers also have been caught up by the closure. Mag owes a tool shop in El Paso, Texas, $40,000, according to the owner, who declined to be named. That is money the four-person operation cannot afford to lose: ``This $40,000 could put me out of business,'' he said.
Mag customer Harman-Becker Automotive Systems Inc. sought court action in both Indiana and Texas to access tools needed for its products. Harman-Becker lawyer Bruce Koehler declined to comment.
Officials in Morgan County, Ind., home to Mag's Martinsville facility, said there were ``several cases'' pending within the court system there involving Mag, including tax liens and civil cases, but they could not provide details.
Everything within Mag's facilities is up for bid in a pair of auctions, by order of secured parties. Branford Group, Myron Bowling Auctions and Koster Auctions will hold both on-site and online sales, with the El Paso plant auction set for Aug. 8, and Martinsville for Aug. 10.
The holdings include 14 injection presses in El Paso and 12 in Martinsville, along with robots, chillers, granulators, paint lines, toolroom equipment, and chairs and telephone systems from the offices.
SabreTech bought the two Mag plants in 2001. The company made parts for the automotive industry, consumer electronics and appliance markets.
In 2005, SabreTech acquired C-Plastics Corp., based in Leominster, Mass., and one product line of Emplast Inc. of Chanhassen, Minn.
C-Plastics staff also would not comment on the Mag closings or auctions.