CLAYTON, MO. (May 30, 3:10 p.m. ET) — Spartech Corp. plans to close its sheet plant in Cornwall, Ontario, by the end of January.
“We want to optimize our use of capacity,” said Spartech spokeswoman Christi Emmenegger in a telephone interview. The closure will cut 47 positions in Cornwall, which makes sheet for general sale.
Most of Cornwall's production will be moved to a Spartech plant in Granby, Quebec, about two hours east of Cornwall. The Granby plant, which makes packaging for Danone yogurt products as well as sheet for general sale, employs 84 and probably will add 20-25 employees when it gets the Cornwall work.
Elsewhere in Canada, Spartech also runs a sheet plant in Stratford, Ontario, that employs 53. Both Granby and Stratford will continue operations, according to Emmenegger.
Cornwall employees may apply for positions in Granby, or will be offered assistance to find new jobs, Emmenegger said.
Last summer Spartech announced it was expanding thermoplastic olefin sheet production in its Cape Girardeau, Mo., facility.
Spartech's sheet and rollstock unit had an operating loss of $16 million for the fiscal year ended Oct. 29, compared with an operating income of $25 million for the previous year.
Clayton-based Spartech operates 24 film and sheet plants in North America, according to Plastics News' recent film and sheet ranking.
