EXIM Chairman Reed Presents Exporter of the Year Award to Consolidated Metal Products, Inc.
CINCINNATI, Ohio - Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) President and Chairman Kimberly A. Reed today presented an EXIM 2020 Exporter of the Year award to Consolidated Metal Products, Inc. (CMP), a small business that manufactures suspension parts for trucks and trailers, and toured the company's facilities in Cincinnati, Ohio.
The company, which has used EXIM's working capital loan guarantee since 2006, also was honored virtually during EXIM's 2020 Annual Conference in September.
Founded in 1945 in Cincinnati, CMP is a family-owned business owned by Hugh M. Gallagher, Jr., who pioneered the company's unique, patented process for manufacturing u-bolts and other suspension parts for use in light-, medium-, and heavy-duty trucks and trailers. With approximately 150 employees, the company maintains sales representatives in North America, Europe, South America, and Southeast Asia.
EXIM Chairman Kimberly Reed presents the 2020 EXIM Exporter of the Year Award to Consolidated Metal Products President John R. Bernloehr. Also joining is (l-r) Vice President of Finance Charlie Schmidt; Vice President of Administration & Product Planning (and 47-year employee) Fred Madden; Director of Sales, Marketing, & Logistics John A. Thomson; and Vice President of Manufacturing Patrick Gallagher.
"Consolidated Metal Products is a first-in-class Ohio and U.S. success story, and I am proud to recognize this flourishing manufacturer as an EXIM 2020 Exporter of the Year," said EXIM Chairman Kimberly Reed. "Especially as we think about our nation's economic recovery in the wake of COVID-19 and the automotive and trucking industries, it was an honor to meet this small business world leader. EXIM's working capital loan guarantee allows this company - and its 150 talented employees - to achieve even more success through the export of high-quality 'Made in the USA' truck and trailer suspension system u-bolts to the global marketplace."
"EXIM has been critical in CMP's efforts to compete for and expand our business beyond the United States. Through the EXIM Working Capital Guarantee Program, CMP is able to offer normal payment terms to our non-U.S. customers and compete on a level playing field throughout the world. Our growth plans for the future will largely be overseas, so our needs with EXIM will continue to grow," said CMP President John R. Bernloehr.
Since 2006, CMP has maintained a $2.4 million EXIM guaranteed line of credit, specifically to support its export business, from The Huntington National Bank, a regional lender headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The working capital loan guarantee has enabled the company to increase revenue from international markets by allowing foreign accounts receivables and inventory designated for non-U.S. customers to be used as collateral. CMP exports to assembly plants in 16 countries, with international sales generating approximately 25 percent of annual revenues. Since 2015, EXIM has supported exports valued at approximately $52 million.
Since 2014, EXIM has supported exports valued at $5 billion from 211 companies-including 151 small businesses like Consolidated Metal Products-across Ohio. Approximately 90 percent of EXIM authorizations directly support small businesses.
U.S. companies, particularly small businesses, can utilize EXIM's financing tools and resources to increase their international sales, showcase their "Made in the USA" products, and sustain American jobs. By partnering with EXIM, exporters can mitigate the risk of nonpayment on international sales, offer credit terms to foreign buyers, and access working capital loan guarantees. In addition, EXIM has implemented several COVID-19 (coronavirus) relief measures for U.S. exporters and financial institutions to enhance the agency's existing programs.
ABOUT EXIM:
EXIM is an independent federal agency that promotes and supports American jobs by providing competitive and necessary export credit to support sales of U.S. goods and services to international buyers. A robust EXIM can level the global playing field for U.S. exporters when they compete against foreign companies that receive support from their governments. EXIM also contributes to U.S. economic growth by helping to create and sustain hundreds of thousands of jobs in exporting businesses and their supply chains across the United States. In recent years, approximately 90 percent of the total number of the agency's authorizations has directly supported small businesses. Since 1992, EXIM has generated more than $9 billion for the U.S. Treasury for repayment of U.S. debt.
For more information about EXIM, please visit www.exim.gov.
###