Purchase agreement calls for preserving jobs
Milwaukee Forge, a financially challenged business which was to be liquidated, is getting a chance to stay in business.
A local investment group is seeking a judge’s approval to buy and operate Milwaukee Forge, which makes forgings for such industries as agriculture, construction and mining.
That’s according to new filing in the company’s receivership proceeding, pending in Milwaukee County Circuit Court. A hearing on the purchase offer is scheduled for Nov. 12.
The group, Milwaukee ForgeTech Holding LLC, would pay $4.6 million for Milwaukee Forge’s equipment and other assets. That includes its 135,000-square-foot building, which sits on 8 acres at 1532 E. Oklahoma Ave., the filing said.
Milwaukee ForgeTech lists Phillip Prange, of Waukesha, as its registered agent. Prange couldn’t be immediately reached for comment.
The purchase offer comes after court-appointed receiver Michael Polsky’s earlier attempts to find a buyer for the company were unsuccessful.
That led Milwaukee Forge to begin winding down its operations. That included plans to auction off its assets.
Milwaukee ForgeTech’s purchase agreement provides calls for hiring “substantially all employees of Milwaukee Forge,” and bargaining in good faith with their labor unions, according to the court filing.
The purchase is to occur by Nov. 14, and doesn’t have a financing contingency.
The purchase is in the best interests of Milwaukee Forge and its creditors, Polsky said. The company’s largest creditor is Bank First, which is owed $3.4 million, according to court filing.
Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com and followed on Instagram, Bluesky, X and Facebook
