Spangler Wins National Gypsum

FORMER CHAIRMAN C.D. SPANgler has at last prevailed in the rancorous battle to take control of National Gypsum, the nation's second-largest plasterboard maker. Spangler's $1.2 billion bid scared away a competing offer from BPB Industries and won over Lafarge Coppee, the big Gypsum investor that previously had opposed a takeover. Now, however, comes the hard part. Gypsum is spinning off more than $100 million in cash per year. But the officers of a trust set up to protect the company against asbestos liability complain that the trust is underfunded. And the cost of upgrading the company's 18 U.S. plants could run beyond $500 million, analysts say.