DEL Equipment

DEL Equipment, a Newmarket, Ontario-based truck body builder and truck equipment upfitter, filed for protection under the CCAA on October 22. Operating nation-wide from six manufacturing and distribution locations, the company is currently facing a liquidity crisis and is in significant arrears to many of its suppliers. In June 2017, Gin-Cor Industries, a company that operates in the same field, acquired a 40% equity stake in DEL and assumed management control of the company. The majority of the anticipated business synergies failed to materialize, however, and in July 2018 the transaction was terminated and control of the business reverted back to DEL's previous sole shareholder. Despite this, the company's operational challenges have continued, and DEL is now more than $8.0 million in arrears to its supplier base, many of whom have begun to compress payment terms. Adding to this, the company has become embroiled in a payment dispute; a customer inadvertently remitted approximately $874.1 thousand to Gin-Cor instead of DEL and Gin-Cor is now refusing to return the funds. While under creditor protection, the company will seek to resolve the payment dispute. It also will attempt to complete a going-concern sale of the business or a restructuring transaction. MNP was appointed monitor. Counsel is Goodmans for the company and GSNH for the monitor.