Conforce International Inc. (fka CFRI)

[charhorse]

[charhorse]

Conforce won't reopen factory in Peru, officials say

Carson Gerber Kokomo Tribune



PERU — A company that anticipated creating 175 jobs by the end of the year is leaving Peru after struggling for three years to get up and running and taking at least $200,000 of taxpayer money with it, according to Miami County officials.

Conforce USA, located near the intersection of U.S. 31 and U.S. 24, began operation in May 2011 and initially hired around 25 production workers. A year later, the company laid off all the employees, except management positions, after it decided to retool its production lines.

In August 2012, Conforce reopened one of its production lines and re-hired eight people, but again laid off all employees to retool its equipment a second time.

The company never rehired employees after that, and county officials say it appears the company is now permanently closing up shop.

Officials with Peru and the county had high hopes when the company first indicated it would invest more than $13 million to purchase and equip the 155,000-square-foot manufacturing facility that previously housed the Trelleborg automotive plant.

Conforce was to begin manufacturing a new product called EKO-FLOR, a composite flooring system that replaces traditional hardwood floors in semitrailers and other shipping containers.

“Everything looked like it was very promising,” said Jim Tidd, executive director of the Miami County Economic Development Authority. “They had a good product that there was a need for, and there was cash to get up and running. Everybody was hopeful, but our hopes got less and less as we saw what was happening … It looks like right now Conforce will never utilize that building,”

The city enticed the company to the area with a number of tax abatements and a $500,000 forgivable loan. Each year Conforce met certain hiring and investment requirements, the city would forgive $100,000 of the loan and reapprove the tax abatements.

But Conforce failed to meet those requirements within the first year. And now that the company is pulling out its investment, city officials say they want to get some of the loan money back.

Peru City Attorney Bill Berkshire said he’s drawing up an agreement with a Conforce attorney that would repay $50,000 of the loan immediately, and potentially another $250,000 in the future.

He said the city has put a lien on the company’s equipment inside the facility. If Conforce sells the equipment or begins to manufacture EKO-FLOR at another location, the city could then get back the $250,000.

“That’s about as good as we can expect to get,” Berkshire said. “ … But Conforce isn’t saying they will sell the equipment. If we end up getting $300,000, I’d be pretty stoked.”

With Conforce closing up, Tidd said the two biggest concerns are getting some of the loan money back and finding a new company to buy the facility.

“It’s a good building and it’s in a great location,” he said. “Now it’s a question of how we turn this into an opportunity to turn that building into another place for jobs.”

[charhorse]

There is nothing there

[charhorse]

Where has the management information gone, is there any

http://conforceinternational.com/sitemap.html

[charhorse]

Bloomburg tv

This guy does reference plastics in his interview however the reference would seem to be related to the failed Maersk Recycled plastic attempt. But you decide


http://www.bloomberg.com/video/70057914-sterling-says-maersk-switch-to-bamboo-will-take-18-years.html

[charhorse]

Hamburg Sud Group

http://www.hamburg-sued.com/group/en/corporatehome/qualityenvironment/containerlogistics/drycontainers/drycontainers.html

Following extensive series of trials – which aimed at high quality, sustainability and economic viabilityin equal measure – Hamburg Süd has decided in favour of bamboo as the alternative.Unlike wood, bamboo does not require reforestation. The reason is that the root system remains inthe ground when bamboo is harvested, and newstems grow back in just four years.In advance of this decision, we sought out suppliers of bamboo floors and inspected their productionsites. In the process we found that expertise in working with bamboo is widespread in China.

The production method is as follows: First, the bamboo stems are split and cut into thin strips. Then the workers bind the strips together to form mats and compress several layers into large sheets with the application of heat.

Our firm target for the use of bamboo is to have an average of at least 80 per cent of our container newbuildings delivered with bamboo floors by 2015, at the latest. We are confident of hitting this target because we surpassed the 50 per cent mark for the first time in 2012. In concrete figures this means that, of our newly ordered 51,000 TEU standard containers, 39,000 had bamboo floors.

[charhorse]

COA flooring report


http://www.containerownersassociation.org/news/365-coa-report-reveals-increased-use-of-bamboo-for-container-floors.html

The volume of plastic and composite floors being installed in containers was expected to rise
last year - but it did not, and in 2013 the number will be effectively zero. There are (or were)
two players in this market – MCI and Conforce – and they took very different approaches.
MCI focused on using recycled plastic, as it is cheap and readily available, formed into
planks with strengthening longitudinal steel omega sections. Conforce, for their Eko-Flor,
use a special thermoset plastic supplied by Bayer, which is much stronger than recycled
plastic but more expensive. Orders have not been forthcoming because of the unwillingness
of buyers to pay a premium of between $140 and $250 per TEU for a composite floor.

[charhorse]

"CMA CGM now uses bamboo floors for all new container orders."

http://www.cma-cgm.com/products-services/containers

[charhorse]

http://www.mcicontainers.com/aboutus/mciworldwide/pages/maerskcomposites.aspx

Maersk Composites China Co. Ltd. (MCCC) was established in 2012 after several years of research and development aimed at combining wood fibres and recycled plastic waste in the production of dry container floors. MCCC is now under de-construction because, balancing profitability and sustainability, there is currently no market or commercial opportunities for such containers.

[charhorse]

Conforce International lists new contact information

http://conforceinternational.com/contactus.html

Is this a post office box?

[charhorse]

Former Conforce Factory for lease

Industrial for Lease: Conforce USA

http://officespace.oodle.com/detail/industrial-for-lease-conforce-usa/3578900512-peru-in/

[charhorse]

Whats to become of the Bayer partnership?

The current due to expire in March 2014

MaterialScience below expectations

Bayer continues successful course in anniversary year
Dynamic development in the Life Science businesses, MaterialScience below expectations / Outstanding growth for recently launched pharmaceutical products - estimate of combined peak annual sales potential for the five products increased to at least EUR 7.5 billion / Group sales EUR 40,157 million (plus 1.0 percent; Fx & portfolio adj.: plus 5.1 percent) / EBIT advanced by 25.6 percent to EUR 4,934 million / EBITDA before special items up by 1.5 percent to EUR 8,401 million / Net income increased 32.7 percent to EUR 3,189 million / Core earnings per share up 5.8 percent to EUR 5.61 / Forecast for 2014: further growth in sales and earnings

[charhorse]

Difficult market environment for Bayer MaterialScience

Sales in our high-tech polymer materials business (MaterialScience) receded by 2.2 percent to EUR 11,238 million (2012: EUR 11,491 million), matching the prior-year level (plus 0.4 percent) on a currency- and portfolio-adjusted basis. "MaterialScience faced considerable challenges in 2013, in what remained a difficult market environment. Both volumes and prices were virtually unchanged compared with the prior year," Dekkers remarked.

Business with foam raw materials (Polyurethanes) rose by 3.9 percent (Fx & portfolio adj.). Volume gains in Asia/Pacific and North America contributed to this increase. Selling prices as a whole were at the prior-year level. Sales of high-tech plastics (Polycarbonates) receded by 4.5 percent (Fx & portfolio adj.), mainly due to a drop in volumes in all regions on account of weaker demand. A further factor was the lower level of selling prices in Asia/Pacific caused by market overcapacities. Sales of raw materials for coatings, adhesives and specialties fell by 1.9 percent (Fx & portfolio adj.), largely as a result of lower selling prices in Asia/Pacific. Volumes as a whole were flat with the prior year.

EBITDA before special items of the subgroup dropped by 15.1 percent to EUR 1,072 million (2012: EUR 1,263 million), mainly due to higher raw material costs. "Despite the difficult market environment for MaterialScience in 2013, we are cautiously optimistic about the future," said Dekkers. The expected increase in capacity utilization in the industry in the coming years should relieve the pressure on prices

[bobbies]

Should read total write off

[bobbies]

Impossible to know as company has gone invisible. It's now or soon will be a Tatar write off. It just failed to deliver under poor leadership. Imho

[Hank4]

Who is using the MCI factory?
http://www.worldcargonews.com/htm/t20130118.494977.htm
Anyone think it is Conforce? Maersk places PIETER EEKEL on the board of Conforce. EEkel was the technical manager for Maersk. Maersk conducted trials with Eko-flor for years. Maersk has publicly stated it is using a new material that is antibacterial. Eko-flor is microbial resistant. Conforce was very clear before going dark that they wanted to manufacture in China. Using the MCI factory was the fastest and cheapest way. Conforce had enough cash to get them to August, 2013. No bankruptcy yet. They canceled the vanguard order, shipped the equipment from Peru, Indiana to China and called it a retool? All to focus on the shipping container business. If the folks in Peru knew, could there be legal action considering the grants and low interest rate loans given to Conforce in return for the promise to hire a specific number of people? Is this one reason for going dark? I'm just trying to make sense of it all. Putting the pieces together and connecting the dots.

[Hank4]

They were supposed to run out of cash in August without external financing or significant increase in sales. No bankruptcy yet. I believe they stripped the tools out of indiana and are producing product as fast as they can in china. Can't prove it. But the evidence is there. They voluntarily delisted. That's a big difference from forced delisting. blind faith is required. Can't see it. But the evidence is all around. Kind of like believing in god. that was a great opportunity for believers when that 1.8 million share dump took it under .003. Given that august has passed awhile ago, I fell the risk reward is strongly in the buyers favor at under a penny.

[bobbies]

Is there any life left in this old dog?

[bobbies]

What do you make of that. Date is tommorrow

[darth_trader_hsm]

On the Conforce International homepage, there is a button for a press release dated October 12, 2013.......ahemmmmmmmmm

http://conforceinternational.com/

[bobbies]

Nothing from company in months. The refuse to respond to calls. Shameful POS CEO and company.

[Penny Roger$]

$CFRI ~ Daily Par Sar Buy Signal ~ Criteria alert triggered during a recent trading session!

$CFRI has just triggered the "Parabolic SAR Buy Signals" scan criteria at Stockcharts.com
~ http://tinyurl.com/SAR-BUY ~







For a more in Depth study and DD profile, similar to the one contained in this link: ~ http://tinyurl.com/DDexample ~
Click the following link and type ticker or brief message asking me about the DD: ~ http://tinyurl.com/GET-THE-DD ~

What does the scan "Parabolic SAR Buy Signals" mean? Below is an image example and study link.
~ http://stockcharts.com/school/doku.php?id=chart_school:technical_indicators:parabolic_sar ~


To find other similar posts of "CFRI" utilize the links that follow.
Search MACDgyver's "Parabolic SAR Buy Signals" posts: ~ http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/msgsearchbymember.aspx?searchID=251916&srchyr=2013&SearchStr=ParSarBuyScan ~
Search MACDgyver's posts for symbol "CFRI": ~ http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/msgsearchbymember.aspx?searchID=251916&srchyr=2013&SearchStr=CFRI ~
Search Ihub for "CFRI" posts: ~ http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/msgsearch.aspx?SearchStr=CFRI ~


For more in depth training and information visit Chartschool on the Stockcharts page.
~ http://stockcharts.com/school/doku.php?id=chart_school ~


Also don't forget the Ihub Edu Channel.
~ http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/education.aspx ~


c

[trader53]

CFRI - First appeared on our Daily Scan,
on August 20th.

http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=91302842

[mkinhaw]

.022 from .0011 recently
albeit lo vol

MK

[Hank4]

Repriced. Not removed.

[Hank4]

There are several press releases from the big shippers that make it clear they are using Conroe products. At least one even mentions ekoflor by name. This company will be removed in a big way.

[Hank4]

I don't know. I have thought about the possibility of management taking he company private with the help of outside financing. Then a few years down the road, have a multi_billion dollar OPP. Anyone have thoughts about this? We would make money if they go private. But IMO we make much more if they don't.

[bobbies]

Weird price fluctuations, higher volume. I wonder if there may be some life left in the pos company, but I doubt it.

[mkinhaw]

Nice grab at .0011

MK

[bobbies]

How do you account for the fact that the company won't even confirm that it is open for business? They are totally non responsive to any inquiry. Have you tried?

[Hank4]

There is nothing you can do expect wait and be patient. They are not going bankrupt. Government is a creditor too. They could never justify it in court. 42 million shares held by Mario means something. They are also authorized for another 100 million shares. They won't issue these until the stock is much higher. The technology is very disruptive. The less competitors know and the longer they know less, the better for Conforce and customers. Given all the news from those other than conforce, I feel at this price this is about as sure of a thing you will ever find as an investment.

[bobbies]

I have made repeated unsuccessful attempts to contact the company but they refuse to respond. Why? I am not even convinced they are still in business.

Perhaps you could try to see if they answer.

[Hank4]

http://www.conforce1.buildingmy.com/

This is new. Doesn't seem like a company that will run out of cash in August.

[Hank4]

http://www.maritimeprofessional.com/Blogs/Far-East-Maritime/May-2013/Maersk-rate-hikes-hitting-the-high-notes.aspx

Disruptive enough to encourage rate hikes. If this new material is from Conforce, what value do you place on Conforce?

There was a Maersk press release early in the year that announced the end of production in their container flooring plant in China. But Maersk said it would remain open and that someone else would use it? Is someone else..... Conforce? I don't know for sure. But if you own Conforce stock, I think it is worth holding to find out. Conforce retooled in January. Why? For reefer material? Previous filings stated that cash would run out in August unless there was a significant increase in sales or there was external financing. August is soon here. Filings delayed. Not sure how long they can be delayed. I think we will find out soon.

[Hank4]

http://www.motorship.com/news101/industry-news/maersk-sponsors-un-save-foods

Conforce material? If not, where did the material come from? How many companies are working on this? How many have the former chief technology officer of Mearsk on it's board? Potentially very disruptive technology.

[bobbies]

Now sub penny. Pathetic scam company!

[bobbies]

Is the company still in business?

[charhorse]

Yeah they sure fooled me

[bobbies]

I've emailed the company a few times over the last month but no response. They have a total lack of regard for shareholders which speaks to the general ethics of the company. No wonder they are foundering - particularly if they show the same lack of ability to form relationships with buyers as they do with shareholders.

A total POS company!

[charhorse]

Bayer presentation, "Life Cycle Assessment of Composite Shipping Container Floors Compared to Conventional Wood Flooring," will be presented at Composites 2013 in Orlando, Fla., Jan. 29-31, 2013.
Composites for shipping container floors contribute to reduced energy use and smaller carbon footprint

Composite flooring incorporating Bayer's polyurethane is a light weight alternative to traditional materials
http://www.bayermaterialsciencenafta.com/news/index.cfm?mode=detail&id=6D9A272B-EAB9-983D-69041A8CCAB94215

[charhorse]

MCI composite floor subsidiary to close
Maersk Container Industry (MCI) is to close its composite container flooring subsidiary in China just six months after it opened. The company blamed higher than anticipated costs and lower demand than expected.

However, according to MCI’s CEO, Peter Krøgh Nymand, the factory itself is not yet closing because MCI is investigating ways that part of the business may be sold off to continue to operate as part of another company....

http://www.worldcargonews.com/

[bobbies]

What bothers me most about this company (other than the pps) is the utter disregard the company has for shareholders. They refuse to answer emails or provide any real timely updates to us. I think .01 and below is in the cards before this POS heads for bankruptcy.

[bobbies]

Continues to be pos

[jackfree]

Sticking it to vehicle weight: Bayer's materials contribute to enhanced styling, reduced vehicle weight

Sticking it to vehicle weight: Bayer's materials contribute to enhanced styling, reduced vehicle weight

Pittsburgh, November 15, 2012 — Plastics and adhesives are playing an increasing role in helping automakers reduce weight and enhance vehicle aesthetics inside and out.

Bayer's diverse portfolio of lightweight materials and technologies can be used in numerous automotive applications, including composite underbodies, roof modules, load floors, exterior body panels, window glazing, headliners and interior components to help automakers reduce vehicle weight while retaining style and safety. Lightweight, multi-material vehicles require bonding technologies to handle the diverse material mix, and two-component polyurethane adhesives are well-suited for this task.

Bruce Benda, vice president, Automotive and Transportation, Bayer MaterialScience LLC, shared his insights about the trends for lightweight materials and bonding technologies in his presentation "Material Considerations and Making Them Stick in Lightweighting Technologies," during the 2nd annual Plastics in Lightweight Vehicles conference. During the conference, Benda also participated in an automotive panel discussion.

[jackfree]

Form 10-Q Released

Form 10-Q Released

[crawfish poboy]

like my chances

[charhorse]

There is no such thing here

[crawfish poboy]

Got the fill... easy money from right here.

[crawfish poboy]

keep whacking... I am waiting.

[Roy London]

low vol take down