Biopool to Consolidate at Its Ventura Facilities

Biopool International announced that the company will restructure its operations by closing its Canadian facilities and consolidating the operations of its subsidiary, Biopool Canada, with the company’s Ventura facilities.

“This is a matter that our board of directors has been reviewing for quite some time,” said Michael D. Bick, Biopool chairman and chief executive officer. “The manufacturing processes, raw materials and products at Biopool Canada are to a large extent duplicative of our resources in Ventura, and the needs of our customers can be serviced effectively from the Ventura facilities.”

Bick said the move will eliminate certain overhead costs and make the company more cost-efficient and competitive.

“Although we will incur significant one-time charges to accomplish the consolidation, we will benefit from considerable annual savings well into the future,” he said.

The consolidation is expected to be complete by June. The company expects to incur a restructuring charge of $400,000, roughly $300,000 of which will be taken in the fourth quarter of 1997. Officials said they believe potential cost savings will offset these charges in less than two years.

Biopool develops and manufactures test kits to assess and diagnose blood disorders and products used to monitor and measure the presence of drugs of abuse.