A former Nypro plant in Dothan, Ala., will close by the end of the year, according to local news outlets.
Jabil Circuit Inc. bought the plant as part of its 2013 acquisition of Nypro Inc. The molding facility reportedly employs 100 full-time workers and has 50 temporary positions.
Kevin Bokros, general manager of Jabil's consumer package goods division, notified local business leaders about the closure in a text to the president of the Dothan Area Chamber of Commerce, according to a July 29 story on the Dothan Eagle website.
“It is an opportunity to improve costs for our customers by moving work closer to the actual customer sites, thus reducing freight costs,” Bokros said, according to the report.
He added that Jabil will save money by optimizing machine capacity at other facilities, the newspaper said.
Alabama station WTVY said the facility will shut down at the end of this year.
Plastics News' phone calls to the Alabama plant and corporate office were not immediately returned.
Jabil bought Nypro for $655 million in 2013. The Nypro name remains, and the facility became part of Jabil Packaging Solutions, which serves consumer, pharmaceutical, and lawn and garden markets.
On his LinkedIn profile, Bokros says the Alabama plant was taking in $22 million of sales but less than 1 percent of net income until Jabil arrived. Sales increased by “a record” 30 percent and profit by $3 million in fiscal 2013 followed by 6 percent sales growth and 37 percent profit growth in 2014, Bokros's profile says.
In fiscal 2015, the Alabama site saw sales increase 38 percent and profit go up 50 percent, Bokros says on LinkedIn, adding, “All this was done while offering our customer, representing 90 percent of our volume, 3 percent [year-on-year] discounts.”
In September 2015, Bokros's profile says he was tapped to lead a newly formed multi-site consumer products division with operations in Dothan; Hanover Park, Ill., and Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, with the expectation to improve results and grow the division from $125 million to $250 million within three years.