Whirlpool Corp. announced Friday that it will close its manufacturing plant in Evansville, Ind., eliminating about 1,100 full-time jobs by mid-2010.
Next year's closing is among several changes in the company’s North American manufacturing operations.
Whirlpool (NYSE: WHR), based in Benton Harbor, Mich., said in a news release that production of top freezer refrigerators made at Evansville will be transferred to one of the company's existing plants in Mexico.
Production of icemakers produced in Evansville will be relocated to a site yet to be determined.
Friday’s announcement follows a comprehensive review of alternatives for product consolidation within the refrigeration product category.
The company also said that it is currently evaluating options for the best location for the Refrigeration Product Development Center, which is also in Evansville and has about 300 employees.
“This was a difficult but necessary decision,” Al Holaday, vice president, North American Manufacturing Operations for Whirlpool, said in the release. “To reduce excess capacity and improve costs, the decision was made to consolidate production within our existing North American manufacturing facilities. This will allow us to streamline our operations, improve our capacity utilization, reduce product overlap between plants, and meet future production requirements.
“We are announcing this decision nearly one year in advance as part of our commitment to make the transition as smooth as possible.”
Home-appliance maker Whirlpool had sales of about $19 billion in 2008. It has 70,000 employees and 67 manufacturing and technology research centers around the world, and its brands include Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid and Jenn-Air.
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