Venture Industries Files For Bankruptcy; Hires Ceo

Automotive supplier Venture Industries declared U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy and named Joe Day as ceo. Larry Winget, one of the company's founders and its majority owner, steps down but will remain chairman. Day joined Venture's executive board last January, soon after retiring from his post as ceo of Freudenberg-NOK, another automotive supplier.

Day told the Detroit Free Press that substantial personnel cuts will need to be made, but added that the business remains solid despite its debt load. Last year, the German management of Peguform, which Venture acquired in 1999, declared its business insolvent and blamed Venture management for diverting cash from the operation to North America. Peguform Germany is to be sold by a German insolvency lawyer

(Apr mp, 17; mpi, 18).