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132 workers will lose jobs in Moncure: A third of Performance Fibers' work force will be notified in October and stop work early in 2009(News & Observer, The (Raleigh, NC) (KRT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Sep. 2--Performance Fibers plans to lay off 132 workers at its Moncure plant as the company contends with slumping demand, more competition and higher costs. The reductions will affect a third of employees at the factory, which has a work force of about 400. Those affected will be notified in October and leave by early next year, according to a mass layoff notice filed late last week with the N.C. Department of Commerce. Performance Fibers manufactures polyester that's used to reinforce tires and belts and for industrial fabrics and upholstery. Its North American business has struggled as customers restructure their operations, Asian rivals increase production, and expenses for materials and energy surge. The company said in April it would reduce manufacturing capacity in Moncure and at a plant in Salisbury. Its notice to Commerce details the plan. Performance Fibers, which is based in Richmond, Va., is trying to match production with "customers' needs and industry demand," spokeswoman Joan Izzo said. "The Moncure plant will remain in operation but at reduced capacities." Displaced workers will receive benefits and other assistance, she said. The cutbacks illustrate that this region, which has continued to attract new jobs amid the economic slump, is not immune to broader factors roiling the global economy. Unemployment, while less than the state and national averages, rose in July to 5.1 percent -- the first time it has been more than 5 percent in four years. Performance Fibers traces its history to the middle of the last century, when Allied Chemical started the fibers business. The operation eventually became part of Honeywell International, which sold the division to Sun Capital Partners in 2004. The 305,000-square-foot Moncure plant is on 420 acres southwest of Raleigh near the Wake-Chatham county line. The facility was commissioned in 1971, according to the company's Web site. To see more of The News & Observer, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.newsobserver.com. Copyright (c) 2008, The News & Observer, Raleigh, N.C. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |