Hafco Foundry and Machine, Inc.
Basil Fornaci & Billy Fornaci
301 Greenwood Avenue
Midland Park, NJ 07432
Tel: 201-447-0433
Website: www.hafcovac.com
Hafco Foundry and Machine, Inc. is a distributor of metal castings and machined parts to the rail industry, and manufacturer of industrial pneumatic vacuums and dust equipment for the coal mining industry. Founded in 1969, the company is managed today by co-presidents and brothers, Basil and Billy Fornaci, who are the third generation owners. Over its many years in business, Hafco experienced steady and consistent growth, achieving over $6 million in annual sales.
In September 2015, Basil’s and Billy’s father and Chief Executive Officer, Michael Fornaci, unexpectedly passed away. With no written succession agreement in place, Michael Fornaci’s widow became the default owner, and placed her trust in a law firm which cared only for her personal gain, and not the business or its employees. Having cast the brothers’ uncle and Chief Financial Officer, William Fornaci as an adversarial party, instead of the next rightful president, the company’s future was anything but certain. Suddenly, in March 2016, William passed away before any ownership rights were transferred.
Basil and Billy took control of day-to-day operations, while also reviewing a draft of an agreement, proposed by these same lawyers, written to cover the ownership and define the future operations of the company. It was at this point that Billy reached out to the NJSBDC.
Vince Vicari, regional director of the NJSBDC at Ramapo, assigned the Hafco case to Jim Palumbo, whose experience and knowledge has been a perfect fit for the company’s immediate needs. At the very first meeting, Jim pointed out some significant flaws with the agreement, which was then re-written based on his recommendations. Basil and Billy were quick to realize that you simply cannot only take business advice from lawyers and accountants. The SBDC also later connected Hafco with a law firm that would serve more as a neutral party, drafting the formal agreements and handling the transfer of ownership.
Advice from Jim, an experienced and skilled businessperson, turned out to be invaluable for Hafco. In fact, he truly saved the company from what could have been a disastrous agreement. Over the past year and a half, Jim Palumbo has helped to transform Basil and Billy from family business employees to confident and knowledgeable business owners. Beyond day-to-day operations, they’ve learned to create a business plan, generate yearly and quarterly budgets, and forecast the company’s sales. More importantly, they’ve realized the value of implementing all of these business tools and strategies.
Today, Jim and the SBDC at Ramapo continue to advise Hafco in areas such as human resources, distribution agreements, marketing plans, customer relations, inventory management, etc. Going forward, Basil and Billy will continue to implement these new skills and knowledge, and carry on Hafco’s legacy of success.
