Brookfield Engineering Laboratories Inc. (Middleboro, MA)

Manufacturer Pushes Stock Diversification, one in a series of ESOP articles in the Wall Street Journal, discusses how Middleboro, MA based Brookfield Engineering Laboratories Inc., a company with 220 employees that makes viscosity-measurement and control products, achieved a goal of having 25% of the ESOP's assets in assets other than company stock.

Although the company had been committed to the goal, as evidenced by the plan's more generous diversification provisions (than the statutory diversification requirements), they were unable to achieve adequate their goal. In fact, 20% of the employees didn't even invest in the 401(k) plan. Here are some of the steps the manufacturer took to finally achieve the goal:

• Making 25% of the contribution in the form of cash. It was invested in "three exchange-traded funds, including ones tied to long- and short-term Treasurys and the Russell 2000 stock index, representing a basket of small-company stocks"
  
• Matching 10 cents for every dollar up to the maximum annual limit
  
• Bringing in financial advisers for seminars and to develop one-on-one plans