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vermont castings sold....again

15 years ago

"...MONTPELIER Â Monessen Hearth Systems purchased what it calls the "key assets" of the corporate owner of Vermont Castings in bankruptcy court earlier this month, the Kentucky-based company announced Tuesday.

CFM Corp. of Ontario, Canada, the owner of Vermont Castings, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April, after temporarily laying off about 170 workers for several weeks during the winter due to poor sales.

In a statement Tuesday, Monessen Hearth Systems stated it purchased CFM's operations here in Vermont, which includes facilities in Randolph and Bethel. The purchase, which also includes CFM's operations in Mexico, covers the physical plants, machinery, equipment, inventory, contracts and intellectual property.

The fate of the jobs at the two Vermont facilities Â which total just more than 200 Â was not clear Tuesday..."

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Vermont Castings at one time was literally the "Standard of the industry". But it has been sold so many times lately I'm afraid they might now be swallowed up and just plain dissappear. CFM made gas grilles. They bought VC and tried to eliminate the woodstove end and concentrate on gas. They cheapened the line and literally destroyed the VC reputation. You can now buy Vermont Castings gas grilles at Home Depot!

Stove shops here in VT haven't sold VC stoves for years simply because of all the warranty work necessary.

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Comments (4)

tuco
15 years ago
I went to the VC store in the early 80's to pick-up a coal stove for my friends parents. I can't remember what the town was called but it was about a 2 - 3 hour drive from Medford, MA.

At that time, VC was THE name in coal/wood stoves and alot of people were converting over to alternative fuel sources. I remember the store being very busy and their products were not only functional but very aesthetic. The staff were very helpful and knowledgable and you could sense the pride they had in their products.

It's too bad that a company like VC, that was so highly regarded, has become a shell of what it once was. I knew something was up when I began my search for a wood stove recently and was met with apprehension at the mere mention of the VC name.
old-vt-crafter
Original Author
15 years ago
If you went to the factory store it was in Randolph, VT.
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elkimmeg
15 years ago
I noticed Inspecting more Vermont Casting Stoves. I asked, Dale head of opperation, what the situation was with the buy out? A short Email response I cut and pasted here

'VC is kicking butt!....the operation is back to full strength
production with a very large backlog of WOODSTOVEs to produce....will
have more info for you a bit later....Buy American....dale '

In spite what other web locations indicate, the doors of VC are open for business. There is more I can't post. Things are looking good and the new owners are quite happy with the up swing in sales even more pleased of the backlog of orders.
Their new insert Montpelier has been a success story. I have to confirm if they have released the larger model yet This is an entirely different burn technology for them Gone is the Cats in with new upper tube secondary burn technology The smaller cat Winter warm is still being produced As they say why mess with perfection That cat in that size firebox produces longer burn times than conventional non cat technology
___http://www.hearthtalk.com/viewtopic.php?t=700

Here is a link that might be useful: Letter from VC plant opperations manager
old-vt-crafter
Original Author
15 years ago
I for one am happy CFM is out of the picture. VC is known for WOODSTOVES and CFM tried to destroy that.
Time will tell whether or not the jobs remain in VT or go elsewhere. I hope they stay.
Time will tell whether or not VC comes back to it's original glory. I hope they do.

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