Aluminum Chambered Boats ceases operations

Bellingham, Wash., boatbuilder Aluminum Chambered Boats has ceased operations. Its 35 employees were sent home Monday.

Interim president Tom Latham told local media that the recession, mounting debt and the company’s inability to make a profit contributed to the closure.

ACB has attempted to secure a strategic investment partner to restructure the company but has not been successful to date. Now, Mr. Latham is quoted as saying, the company and its stockholders will evaluate what to do next, including aggressively continuing a search for additional capital.

They should have a clearer picture about whether the company can be saved in the next two weeks, Latham said, according to the Tacoma, Wash., News Tribune.

In May, ACB announced a contract with the U.S. Coast Guard to build up to 80 boats, adding $37.7 million in revenue.

The newspaper reports Mr. Latham as saying the contract had “some issues in how it was negotiated” and did not offer the financial benefits ACB was expecting.

“The company didn’t bid appropriately for that contract,” Mr. Latham told the News Tribune.