Foundry’s assets go under the hammer

Business Reporter
FORMER Apex Corporation subsidiary Marondera Foundry’s assets will today go under the hammer through public auction in Marondera to settle liabilities to various creditors. The assets will be sold in situ by the Messenger of Court to pay off a number of creditors including Municipality of Marondera, Renaissance Merchant Bank, Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company, and Mining & Industrial Suppliers.

It was not clear how much the firm owed but assets such as computers, office desks, steel benches, engine lister, industrial blast furnaces, sand mixers and generators will be sold.

Other assets to be auctioned include Atlas Copco, office safe, moulding machines, press drills, electric motor grinders, gas bottles, electricity transformer, body on wheels lorry, lawnmower, Archdale press drill, compressor and polisher.

Marondera Foundry and Manufacturers (Private) Limited specialised in manufacturing cast iron using recycled scrap metal.
Its products included kitchenware, furniture, accessories, coal iron, simple iron, door knockers, sewing machine stands, lamp, agricultural, camping and architectural products.

The firm was part of a bigger foundry, metal and steel specialist group made up of Philpott and Collins, Precision Grinders, McKeen Founders and Engineers, All Metal Founders, Zimcast, Phoenix Consolidated and Gulliver Consolidated.

Marondera Foundry could simply have met the same fate as its former parent Apex Corporation which has shut down all its operations.
Apex Corporation was subsequently suspended from trading on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange.

In a statement attached to its full-year results to October 31 2011, Apex chairman Mr Farai Rwodzi last year said the board took a decision to stop operations after selling off Marondera Foundry and Philpot and Collins last year, while other units McMeekan Foundry and Precision Grinders were also sold last year.

The foundries and engineering group has in the past disposed of its non-performing business units to clear the contingent liabilities of US$10 million. In the period to October 2013 the group recorded an operating loss of US$975 000.