Here is what I know about this situation. It is based on my personal experience with one of the parties as well as what was being posted on the other message boards, so I can't say how much of it is true other than my own dealings with the one company.
The complaints were posted on signweb.com, signindustry.com and neonshop.com. and perhaps other sites that I don't go to. They were not specifically aimed at Sign Fab. They were aimed at a company named I.D. Signs. Apparently I.D. Signs owes some people some money, and at least one person a LOT of money ($40K from what I know).
I.D. Signs was a new start up company less than a year ago who recently merged with Sign Fab. I. D. was supposedly owned by Brian and Candy Seibert. Candy Seibert is the daughter of the person who runs Sign Fab. (I.D. and Sign Fab are located in the same area of Missouri.) Both Brian and Candy worked at Sign Fab before starting I.D. Signs. This is where I think some made the connection between the two companies before the merger (perhaps with good reason).
I.D. Signs leased a lot of the equipment in the shop including what they purchased from me. Most leasing companies won't release payment to the seller until the buyer receives the equipment in good shape. Our policy is payment in advance - no exceptions. And we did get paid in advance, although it wasn't easy. In the long run I.D. Signs owed us a few hundred dollars for replacement parts they needed due to the fact that the personnel using the equipment was untrained or improperly trained on the use of it.
After I.D. Signs closed their doors our invoices went unpaid. Phone calls and emails went unanswered and we considered it a bad debt. After the complaint postings showed up on the various message boards it appeared that we were not the only company who got stuck for some money. So I posted a factual reply to a couple of the threads explaining our experience with I.D. Sings and that they owed us money too. Ironically, within a few days we received full payment for invoices owed by I.D. Signs with a check from Sign Fab.
I.D. Signs supposedly merged with Sign Fab a couple of months ago. A former employee of I.D. Signs said that both Brian and Candy are back working for Sign Fab again. Considering this and the fact that we were paid with a check from Sign Fab for money owed by I.D. Signs would seem to make the connection between the two companies legitimate.
At least one other company followed the normal routine with the leasing company. They sold I.D. Signs a $60K router. There was a down payment of $20K according to what David Lexington (the seller) has told me personally. This left a balance owed of $40K. According to David the router was delivered, set up and I.D. Signs personnel trained to use it. However, the leasing company never released the $40K balance payment to the seller. David has also made all reasonable attempts to collect his money, but to no avail. He apparently has since been granted a Federal Court Order to reposes the router - if he can locate it (at last word it seems to have disappeared). I am not speaking directly for David, but I believe he suspects that Sign Fab has the router as well as other equipment that was leased to I.D. Signs.
One person, Sandy (can't recall the last name), responded to two of the boards with a message to the admin. complaining about them removing the thread. Apparently Sandy's company was about to release $7K worth of product to either I.D. Signs or Sign Fab (Sandy wasn't clear on which one) when she/he (?) saw the threads. Sandy did some checking and got some negative feedback on whichever company was being looked into and decided not to release the order. Sandy felt that the original posts saved her/him $7K, and had it not been for the posts they would have released the order and be out that much money.
Some speculate that Sign Fab started I.D. Signs as a dummy company to obtain new equipment with no intention of paying for it.
Whew, that's it in a nut shell. I'll be interested in what Sign Fab will have to say.