I've been involved in about 10 M&A deals as the buyer in my previous life.
No way Jose on the "on purpose" part. It looks like they totally under estimated the manpower it takes to run and operate the operation. And it's like a college calculus class once you start falling behind you're up shit creek.
I was in operation planning on a few of those deals. I'd be fired and probably executed if what's happening over there ever happened.
Similarly, I was involved in 2 M&As in a large corporation but in a upper mgmt Operations position, not executive level. The same company was a part of each merger.
The first was seamless. Well planned out & communicated, months in the making, no major sudden changes to systems (this was done later over several years). The turnover of personnel was thought out in advance to avoid disruptions. We made changes over time but it was just a part of normal business.
The second, was a mess. Absolutely FUBAR. The announcement came out and several key players were escorted out on day 1. It took numerous reorganization plans and 3-4 years to recover to some semblance of orderly business.
It seems as though SBR is following the 2nd process.