Pretium Packaging to close one of its factories

By Jenny Eagle

- Last updated on GMT

Pretium makes plastic containers for the F&B sector. Picture: Pretium.
Pretium makes plastic containers for the F&B sector. Picture: Pretium.
Pretium Packaging will close a plant in Seymour, Indiana, US, in May, axing 55 jobs.

The company, which makes plastic containers and closures for the food and beverage sector, including snacks, confectionery, drinkable yogurt, beer, wine, water and juice, has 12 plants in the US and Canada.

Three phases

In a letter to employees, Timothy Wehrfitz, SVP mergers & acquisitions, Pretium Packaging, said, Pretium Packaging plans to permanently close its manufacturing facility at Seymour’s Freeman Field airport industrial park, in three phases, starting May 20 and ending in September this year.

‘All employees currently located in that facility will be permanently laid off. The plant closure is scheduled to commence on May 29, 2017, and is anticipated to be completed on or before September 30, 2017,’ it said.

‘It is anticipated that all Seymour plant will be laid off in phases; phase 1: May 29-June 12; phase 2: June 19-July 3; phase 3: August 28-September 11.

‘Affected employees have been or will be give separate notice of their layoffs.’

Federal law requires companies to send state employment officials a minimum 60-day notice of layoffs and closings when it affects a certain number of workers.

Consolidation

Wehrfitz said the company decided to ‘cut costs’ after a year-long analysis as it ‘felt it was necessary to consolidate its business across the other Pretium sites’.

Pretium Packaging announced it was spending more than $4m in 2010 on equipment to enhance its production of plastic bottles and containers for the food, pharmaceutical and personal care markets.

At the time, the firm considered closing the Seymour plant and relocating it but went ahead with the expansion, adding another 13 jobs to the workforce.

The company also acquired Custom Blow Molding (CBM) in California last year, which makes sports nutrition and nutraceutical containers

Paul Kayser, president/CEO, Pretium, said the two firms complement each other and Pretium wants to continue merging with ‘independent blow-molding players’ across the US and Canada.

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