Kahl steps aside at Carborundum, leads prospective buyer group. (Carborundum Co. Pres. Luiz Kahl)

Carborundum Co. President Luiz Kahl said if his management group is successful in buying the company, it will purchase the entire operation instead of parts of it and keep it based in Niagara Falls.

The buyout group's 11th-hour bid is the last of several proposals in hand for the ceramics manufacturer that has occupied a place in the community since 1895.

"I have stated repeatedly that Western New York needs companies like ours and can't afford to lose it," he said. "It is the motivation of the whole team to keep it here."

Kahl would not disclose how many individuals are in the group or if any other Carborundum employees are involved.

The winning bid for the company, which employs 975 full-time workers in Western New York, is expected to be announced in early February, said …