Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • European Rubber Journal
  • Plastics News
  • Tire Business
web
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Automotive
    • Tire
    • Non-Tire
    • Suppliers
    • Silicone
    • Latex
    • Coronavirus
    • Executive Action
    • Government/Legal
    • Opinion
    • Technical Notebooks
    • Women in Tire & Rubber
    • ITEC
    • International Elastomer Show
    • HEXPOL Sponsored Content
    • GM, LG Chem to build batteries in Tennessee by 2023
      Goodyear goes retro for 'Throwback' NASCAR race at Darlington Raceway
      Experts seek to address connected-, autonomous-vehicle energy consumption
      OUR VIEW: Big ideas power big technological leaps
    • Goodyear goes retro for 'Throwback' NASCAR race at Darlington Raceway
      Video: Nexen makes 500 million tires with no recalls
      JK Tyre adds radial truck tires to U.S. portfolio
      Last Mile: Delivery surge raises demand for medium truck tires
    • Nike to step up rubber sustainability efforts
      OUR VIEW: Big ideas power big technological leaps
      Evco Plastics buys Georgia plant to add LSR, white room molding
      Annual CAR MBS will be held as hybrid event
    • SI to begin antioxidant production in China
      ‘China-only Chinaplas' opens as first major industry show in the pandemic
      Farrel updates continuous mixer technology
      Chemours sets greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets
    • Smithers ramps up with Suzhou testing facility
      5 for 50: Bruce Meyer's five most memorable work trips
      AirBoss unveiling high heat-resistant EPDM
      Evco Plastics buys Georgia plant to add LSR, white room molding
    • ‘China-only Chinaplas' opens as first major industry show in the pandemic
      Latin America faces tough recovery from COVID-19, KraussMaffei executive says
      Titan Tire to offer free COVID-19 vaccines at Iowa facility
      Bridgestone hosts vaccination events for plant employees
    • Detroit 3 execs join voting rights debate in Michigan
      Harwick Standard hires Marc Pignataro to executive role
      Motion Industries promotes industry veteran Jim May
      Hutchinson names new chairman, CEO
    • Experts seek to address connected-, autonomous-vehicle energy consumption
      Detroit 3 execs join voting rights debate in Michigan
      Avon Rubber expects 40 percent rise in half-year sales
      Top Glove says U.S. withhold order bears no financial impact
    • Meyer: Sunflowers seek their due
      OUR VIEW: Big ideas power big technological leaps
      Column: Ramping up to an RPN milestone
      Our view: It may be time to rethink, rebuild supply chains
    • Correlating cure kinetics and physical properties with accelerator variations in a model SBR compound
      Material to give tire compounds lower density, lower hysteresis and improved wear
      Technical notebook: How to control porosity in extruded EPDM dense profile
      Part 2: Studying RPA ASTM methods for detecting compound quality differences
    • WORD Conversations: Charles Goodyear Medalist Puskas says academia needs to ease time commitments
      Women find success, opportunity in petrochemicals
      Rubber Division to host WORD webinar series
      Rubber Division introduces WORD webinar series
    • Goodyear recognized by Lockheed Martin as 'elite supplier'
      EV tire advancements to help secure future
      Lambillotte: Only question on AVs is timing
      CAR official says EV future brighter than autonomous
    • Rubber Division preparing for Spring Technical Meeting
      Rubber Division introduces WORD webinar series
      Rubber Division seeks abstracts for 200th Technical Meeting
      WORD panelists say evolution, authenticity keys to success
    • Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Faster Access to Your Polymer Compounding Experts Around the World
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Take a walk thru a HEXPOL Lab
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      HEXPOL offers a unique selection of High Performance Elastomers to match your application requirements
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      It’s what you can’t see that makes the Difference at HEXPOL
  • Blogs
    • Products
    • Wacky World of Rubber
    • New Products: MonTech adds to LP 3000 lab press lineup with custom options
      New Products: 3M rolls out new silicone adhesive for medical use
      GRI gains OE fitment for KION Group forklifts
      New Products: Hexpol develops new salt-water hydrophilic waterstops
    • Wacky World of Rubber: How Trelleborg, teens sealed a spot in the world record book
      Wacky World of Rubber: Of chicken and feet, but not chicken feet
      Wacky World of Rubber: Time to go mattress shopping
      Wacky World of Rubber: Because nothing says football like 'frunk' shrimp
  • Newsletters
    • Rubber in Automotive
    • Silicone News
    • Latex News
    • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • GM, LG Chem to build batteries in Tennessee by 2023
      Goodyear goes retro for 'Throwback' NASCAR race at Darlington Raceway
      Experts seek to address connected-, autonomous-vehicle energy consumption
      OUR VIEW: Big ideas power big technological leaps
    • Smithers ramps up with Suzhou testing facility
      5 for 50: Bruce Meyer's five most memorable work trips
      AirBoss unveiling high heat-resistant EPDM
      Evco Plastics buys Georgia plant to add LSR, white room molding
    • Meyer: Sunflowers seek their due
      World Rubber Summit to be virtual this year
      Synthomer launches Asia innovation center in Malaysia
      Sunflower rubber research expands with new funding
  • Multimedia
    • Videos
    • Photo Galleries
  • Directory
  • Resources
    • Classifieds & Mold Mart
    • Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • HB Chemical
      Sponsored By HB Chemical
      The HB Chemical and Ravago Partnership: Taking Customer Service to a New Level
      Sponsored By HB Chemical
      Above and Beyond with HB Chemical
      Sponsored By HB Chemical
      The Company Behind the Inventory
      Sponsored By French Oil Mill Machinery
      Process Improvement, Cost Reduction with Custom Press Systems
    • Sponsored By AirBoss
      AirBoss introduces next-gen EPDM compound: HeatBoss EPDM
      Sponsored By Uncountable Inc.
      Labs of the Future: How to Choose a Laboratory Information Management System in 2021
      Sponsored By Uncountable Inc.
      Cooper Standard deploys lab informatics platform to synchronize R&D
      Sponsored By Elkem
      LSR Select™: A solution to improve your financial impact in molding applications
  • Data
  • Events
    • RPN Events
    • RPN Livestreams/Webinars
    • Industry Events
    • Past Events
    • ITEC Library
    • International Silicone Conference Library
    • 2021 Healthcare Elastomers Virtual Edition
      2021 Rubber in Automotive Virtual Edition
      2021 International Latex Conference Virtual Edition
      2022 ITEC
  • Advertise
  • DIGITAL EDITION
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
July 12, 2004 02:00 AM

Rouse Polymerics looks to sell

Brad Dawson
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    The founder and CEO of recycled rubber compounder Rouse Polymerics International Inc. has put the company's assets up for sale, citing its inability to overcome a devastating accident and bankruptcy.

    Michael Rouse, who has owned the Vicksburg business-once Rouse Rubber Industries Inc.-since 1988, confirmed July 7 the company is for sale. A classified advertisement seeking potential buyers for the company's business and assets appeared in the July 6 ``Wall Street Journal.''

    Rouse Polymerics has been in turmoil since a May 16, 2002, explosion and fire destroyed the Vicksburg plant, killed five workers and injured seven others. While Rouse attempted to rebuild his business and outsource production to meet his customers' needs, lawsuits-from victims and their families, a vendor and the company sharing a cinder-block firewall with Rouse Polymerics at the time of the explosion-began to pile up.

    Rouse decided to refocus the company on high-end polymers and powders derived from recycled rubber and smaller markets, and built a state-of-the-art 13,000-sq.-ft. facility to house the operations on the Vicksburg property. The new plant opened in the spring of 2003.

    The specter of the accident, the resulting lawsuits, and the difficulty of the company to secure adequate, affordable financing made the road back difficult, Rouse said. So on Aug. 12, Rouse Polymerics filed for Chapter 11 federal bankruptcy protection.

    ``The accident hindered the company from getting loans, and when we could get them, the lenders charged exorbitant interest rates,'' Rouse said. ``It became impossible to do business the way we wanted.''

    While Rouse and his employees have kept the operation going, the product has remained high-quality and the facility has passed several Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspections, he said. But the difficulties have remained, Rouse said.

    ``It's just a business decision now,'' he said.

    Rouse envisions an outstanding opportunity for someone or some company. The upside for whoever buys Rouse Polymerics is, ``It's still a great company and business,'' he said. ``There's a need out there for what we do, and we've always had good customers.''

    Rouse Polymerics is a much different company than the one that existed before the explosion. That version had 100 employees. The plant ran five days a week, 24 hours a day, producing up to 4.5 million pounds of material per month, Rouse said.

    Today, the company is run by a handful of hourly and salaried employees, and Rouse does technical sales and some other duties himself. The ``new'' operation wasn't built for volume, anyway, he said, but it's hardly the same place.

    ``It wasn't something you could foresee,'' he said of the impact of the accident. ``We were profitable, we had good cash flow. If the year (2002) had played out, we would've had revenues around $17 million.''

    The deaths and injuries the accident caused always will be the biggest blow, Rouse said. ``I can lose my business, but the loss of life that occurred, the people that were hurt, you can't trade that for anything,'' he said.

    Despite the changes, Rouse Polymerics has stayed committed to quality and service, Rouse said. ``It's always been our philosophy, our mission,'' he said. ``We can't sacrifice it for anything.''

    It will be up to the potential buyers in their due diligence to determine whether the lingering aspects of the explosion and fire will affect their attempts to continue the business, Rouse said. It also will be their decision whether to relocate the company, he said.

    ``I want to help Vicksburg, I've always wanted to help the community here,'' he said. ``But that will be out of my hands.''

    Rouse said he'd like to have something definite on the table within 90 days, and he knows there are some interested parties out there. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Jackson, Miss., must approve any asset sale.

    After a deal is finalized, there are other possibilities for the 63-year-old Rouse. He said he'd like to act as a consultant to the new owners, helping them get adjusted and offering technical advice.

    If that doesn't work out, there are always other opportunities a man with his skills and technical background can offer. Rouse recently helped write a book, and he'd like to finish work on a doctorate in the future.

    ``I'm going back to Oregon, but I want to stay involved in the industry and pass on whatever knowledge I can,'' he said. ``We'll have to see how things play out.''

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Rubber & Plastics News wants to hear from its readers. If you want to express your opinion on a story or issue, email your letter to Editor Bruce Meyer at [email protected].

    SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Rubber & Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe Today

    Subscribe to Rubber & Plastics News to get the best coverage and leading insights in the industry.

    SUBSCRIBE
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    MISSION

    To serve companies in the global rubber product industry by delivering news, industry insights, opinions and technical information.

    web
    Contact Us

    2291 Riverfront Pkwy, Suite 1000
    Cuyahoga Falls,
    OH 44221

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1726

    Resources
    • About Us
    • Digital Edition
    • Contact the Staff
    • Advertise
    • Order Reprints
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    • Terms of Service
    • Careers
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Partner Sites
    • Tire Business
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Plastics News
    • Plastics News China
    • Urethanes Technology
    • Automotive News
    • Crain Brands
    Copyright © 1996-2021. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Automotive
      • Tire
      • Non-Tire
      • Suppliers
      • Silicone
      • Latex
      • Coronavirus
      • Executive Action
      • Government/Legal
      • Opinion
      • Technical Notebooks
      • Women in Tire & Rubber
      • ITEC
      • International Elastomer Show
      • HEXPOL Sponsored Content
    • Blogs
      • Products
      • Wacky World of Rubber
    • Newsletters
      • Rubber in Automotive
      • Silicone News
      • Latex News
      • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • Multimedia
      • Videos
      • Photo Galleries
    • Directory
    • Resources
      • Classifieds & Mold Mart
      • Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
    • Data
    • Events
      • RPN Events
      • RPN Livestreams/Webinars
      • Industry Events
      • Past Events
      • ITEC Library
      • International Silicone Conference Library
    • Advertise
    • DIGITAL EDITION