Aluminum Extruders in Michigan Face Unfair Trade from Abroad

Michigan extruders include Brazeway of Adrian, International Extrusions of Garden City and Livonia, and Bonnell Aluminum of Niles. Each of the companies has decades of history supporting Michigan communities and workers.

The companies have different specialties. Brazeway is the world’s largest producer of aluminum refrigeration-grade round tubing; International Extrusions makes trailer and car parts and traditional building and construction extrusions; and Bonnell Aluminum is one of the largest U.S. makers of custom fabricated and finished aluminum extrusions for architecture, automotive, consumer durables goods, machinery, and renewable energy.

But they have a common nemesis: a wave of imports from China, Mexico, Colombia, Vietnam, and other countries that threatens to overwhelm them and the jobs of hundreds of workers they employ.

“The strength of the business has weakened over the last few years. We have had reductions in force in our U.S. operation,” said Terry Sheehan, Brazeway’s CEO. “If the federal government doesn’t grant our industry relief, we will have to consider establishing extrusion operations in low-cost countries to survive.”

Foreign competition has already forced Brazeway to move some assembly operations to Mexico. Adrian is still the company’s headquarters and research facility, but not the manufacturing hub it once was.

International Extrusions’ two Michigan locations have also fallen prey to low-priced imports. “Some of our customers have moved 60-to-70 percent of their purchases to offshore manufacturers,” President Nick Noecker said. Unless tariffs are imposed by Washington to counteract the unfair imports, he added, “It could be a death blow.”

“The whole industry has lost market share to imports that are 30 percent or 40 below domestic pricing,” said Bonnell President Brook Hamilton. As a result, he added, the company’s Michigan plant now has 30 percent fewer employees than two years ago.

Michigan extruders are losing ground not because of better or more efficient manufacturing in China, Vietnam, Mexico and the like. Rather, they say foreign extruders are selling their goods below cost to steal market share in the U.S., which amounts to illegal, unfair trade.

A coalition of U.S. extruders has formally complained to the U.S. Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission to intervene and impose duties on the unfair imports as American law requires. Preliminary findings by the government, grounded in real time data, have favored the American extruders so far. The case is continuing in Washington, D.C.

“This is a game that can’t be won by fighting over a couple nickels here or there. It’s a bigger hill to climb,” Hamilton of Bonnell said. “We must take a stand. We’ve got to do something. Sitting on our hands is not an option.”