Tall, lean and broad-shouldered, Overstreet skillfully carved and methodically lifted, again and again, 40-pound slabs of mixed neoprene rubber. He placed the slabs on a rack, readying them for the next manufacturing step. "Wayne makes it look easy, but it's not," said James Overstreet, vice president of manufacturing for Rubatex International LLC. The two men are not related.

Like his father, Burks, before him, Wayne Overstreet is a Rubatex man. He started working for Rubatex a few weeks after graduating from Liberty High School.

Today, Wayne Overstreet, 35, James Overstreet, 55, Larry Brookshier, 59, and other longtime Rubatex employees are back to work for a new Rubatex - Rubatex International LLC.

The new Rubatex is a lot like the old Rubatex - a manufacturer of closed-cell foam rubber and a respected brand name for 70 years. But there are several key distinctions.

Brookshier, executive vice president of Rubatex International and a company investor, emphasizes the distinctions. He said that Rubatex International has no ties to former owner and now bankrupt RBX Corp., which is in the final stages of liquidation. Rubatex International has 37 hand-picked employees, he said, and a plan to grow slowly but steadily.

Brookshier, a Rubatex man for 41 years, remembers when the Rubatex plant in Bedford had about 1,200 employees. He vividly recalls battles between management and members of Local 240 of the United Steelworkers of America and a bitter strike that began in September 1999 and lasted nearly nine months. He knows that RBX Corp.'s financial problems created morale and quality-control problems at the Bedford plant. And he is aware that many Rubatex retirees have suffered hardships after RBX's bankruptcy cost them their benefits.

"We would like to focus on the fact that we're a new company with a bright future," Brookshier said Tuesday.

Craig Meadows, Bedford's city manager, said the new company "seems to be doing very well." He added, "We are elated."

In April 2004, RBX shut down the Bedford plant. (RBX, once based in Roanoke County, still owes the city about $70,000 in property taxes, Meadows said.) In October, production began again after Sedo Chemicals, a German manufacturer of closed-cell rubber, and other investors purchased from RBX the internationally recognized Rubatex brand, plant one of the Rubatex complex in Bedford and, Brookshier said, related "secret formulas, secret recipes and specialized equipment."

The company's products can be found in football helmets, wet suits, sandals, airplanes, automobiles, gym floors and a host of other goods and applications.

The new Rubatex owners turned to Brookshier, James Overstreet and other longtime employees at the Bedford plant for their expertise. They hired back experienced production workers such as Wayne Overstreet, Mack Nichols, John Merritt, David Barlow and Melvin Wuergler.

"I was glad when they opened back up, because it was something I was used to doing," Barlow said.

Wayne Overstreet said he would like to see Rubatex International "continue to do well."

"It's good to be back making decent pay. I ain't too good on a computer, so I'd rather be out here breaking my back," he added.

Brookshier said the plant's average hourly wage is about $14. Rubatex International negotiated in September a new, five-year labor contract with Local 240. Brookshier said the company does not track union membership. Union officials could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Several workers said that the management approach of Rubatex International is a profound improvement over management during RBX's ownership.

"This company is totally different than RBX, managementwise," said Merritt.

"I don't have any problem with the way they are treating me," Barlow said. "They are treating me just fine."

Jim Mott, chief financial officer, said Rubatex International tries to foster a sense of teamwork. "We're all in this together," he said.

Customers also feel reassured when they hear that the plant has new owners and management, said Roland Loch, a managing director in Germany for Sedo Chemicals.

"There are no links to the former RBX group any more, and all business partners, suppliers and customers appreciate that very much," Loch wrote in an e-mail Wednesday.

Ironically, RBX's two remaining employees, Tim Bernlohr and Harry Schickling, rent office space in Bedford from Rubatex International while guiding RBX through the final stages of bankruptcy.

Brookshier said he and other Rubatex International executives have made personal calls to reassure customers that the Rubatex brand is back in business. He said he recently visited automotive industry companies in Detroit and Toronto.

Meadows said people familiar with the rubber industry recognize that the Bedford area "has a large number of skilled employees." He said he believes this specialized skill set could attract other small, industry-related startups to Bedford.

Meanwhile, said Brookshier, Rubatex International's business plan "calls for continued growth, controlled growth." He said he anticipates hiring another 30 people during the coming year. The company is seeking certification from the International Organization for Standardization for its manufacturing process, an endorsement that could help secure additional customers and contracts.

"It's important to stabilize your core business first," Brookshier said.

Loch said "most of the important accounts, including those outside the U.S., have been reactivated."

Brookshier said that when he makes his community rounds in Bedford, he is frequently asked by anxious residents about the new Rubatex's future.

"I hear, 'Are you going to make it?'

"Well, there's no question about it. We're exactly where we want to be."

On the Net:

www.rubatex.com