The PPG plant in Owen Sound is closing…..
Day shift workers were informed this morning of the restructuring that will leave 170 employees out of work.
In a press release from head office in Pittsburgh, management said the plant will stop making glass some time in the first quarter of next year with shipping and distribution continuing until the inventory is depleted.
Plant Manager Tom Kloss expects the Owen Sound facility to be closed in March.
He tells Bayshore Broadcasting some of the workers will be phased out.
Kloss says a weakening North American residential construction market is the main reason for the move.
He says local plant management were trying working hard to prevent the closure from happening but there were too many factors out of their control including a decline in the residential housing market and the automotive sector as well as increases in raw materials and energy costs.
Kloss says while PPG still produces some automotive glass…the majority at the Owen Sound plant is residential.
A PPG plant in the Oakville area is also slated to close some time next year.
Plants in Hawksbury and Oshawa, which produce automotive glass are under a pending sale.
The Owen Sound PPG plant employed more than 600 workers back in the 70’s.
