Plastics and balloon maker CTI Industries Corp. has issued a notice of closure for its Lake Barrington, Ill., plant. But the company is still hoping to keep the plant open.
CTI Industries issued a notice of closure for the plant under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act. However, Frank Cesario, CTI's chief financial officer, said several factors, especially obtaining new financing, could prevent the closure.
"We're hoping to save the plant," Cesario said.
CTI's most recent Form 8-K before the Securities and Exchange Commission, issued Oct. 18, refers to the possible closure of the Lake Barrington plant.
"However, management of CTI continues to seek financing which would permit the company to continue operations," the document said.
The WARN Act requires employers with more than 100 employees who work 20 hours or more a week to file a notice of plant closure no later than 60 days before the projected date.
Those requirements mandated CTI to file a WARN notice, although closure is not yet certain, Cesario said.
The WARN notice gives a closure date for the CTI Lake Barrington facility of between Dec. 26 and Jan. 9.
It lists the number of workers at the plant as 154. Only about 80 of those workers are full-time, according to Cesario.
Foil balloons and unlaminated plastics film and sheets are the main products at the Lake Barrington plant. CTI also makes rubber latex balloons at its Flexo International SA de CV subsidiary in Guadalajara, Mexico.