ARaymond North America is closing a plant in Brunswick, Ohio, that specializes in automotive and industrial fastening systems, affecting 53 employees.
The supplier will transfer production to its other North American facilities, "as part of the company's plan towards best leveraging its manufacturing capabilities," according to an Aug. 6 news release.
Production in Brunswick will be phased out by December, it said.
Injection molding operations will be transferred to ARaymond's facility in Rochester Hills, Mich., Mike Foresman, communications manager for ARaymond told Plastics News in an emailed statement.
"A small number of layoffs in sales are planned for October, with plant manufacturing staff layoffs taking place in November and December," Foresman said.
ARaymond will also provide severance packages and outplacement services for all affected employees. The parent company is based in Grenoble, France.
"In an effort to further enhance the efficiency of our operations, we are in the process of optimizing our North American ... footprint and streamlining our available manufacturing capacity," Dan Dolan, president and CEO of ARaymond's automotive business unit, said in the release. "This realignment is aimed at accelerating our cost competitiveness and better serving the long-term needs of our customers."
The decision to close the plant was made due to the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and "soft" automotive sales forecasts for coming years, the release said.
"We regret having to close this facility because of the long-standing and excellent relationship we have had with our employees and the Brunswick community," Greg Smith, president and CEO of ARaymond's industrial business unit said.
The Brunswick plant was formerly part of Tinnerman Palnut Engineered Products, which ARaymond bought in 2009.