Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
Thank you (Operator Instructions) We will go first to Ingrid Aja at Banc of America, Merrill Lynch.
Ingrid Aja - Banc of America/Merrill Lynch
Good morning. Just, if I go back to the gross margins this quarter and maybe, if you can just add, give us a little more color. Was that just negative operating leverage and how much of that was in transfer pressures indicated a higher transfer related cost in the quarter?
Phil Franklin
Yeah, we had the final push on the transfers to get the completion of Ireland transfer to China and the transfers our Des Plaines to Mexico during the quarter and therefore we did see peak transfer costs during Q4. Those transfer costs combined with an extremely low volume and the negative operating leverage on that's extremely well volume were really the major causes of the margin being what it was. As I indicated in my comments earlier, Ingrid we had very high unabsorbed overhead because of a high level of spending coupled with very low levels of production in the fourth quarter.
Ingrid Aja - Banc of America/Merrill Lynch
Okay, so, can you quantify what those transfer related costs were in the quarter?
Phil Franklin
Well they were - we had talked about transfer related cost being in the neighborhood of peeking at around $3 million, I think, they were probably slightly above that for the fourth quarter.
Ingrid Aja - Banc of America/Merrill Lynch
Okay great. And then in terms of inventories, to add, you had mentioned the inventories completely, that will absorb some of those savings now, but what about working down this quarter. Will you be able to work down some of that inventories that you have built out this quarter. And how does that, will that further impact your margins?
Phil Franklin
Well inventories were relatively flat for the quarter but we did build up inventories during the year, largely related to the transfers as we, we have a target to take inventories down in the $5 million to $10 million range during 2009 and that's significant piece of that is related to taking excess inventories that we build to facilitate the transfers out. We also believe with fewer plans and better means - you know manufacturing processes in those plans but we can drive further tons of improvement over and above that.
Ingrid Aja - Banc of America/Merrill Lynch
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