Square D is to close its manufacturing facility in Ballinasloe with the loss of 385 jobs. The Ballinasloe plant was established in 1971 and manufactures electrical circuit breakers, sold primarily within US markets.
The plant will close in the first half of 2003 and employment there will gradually be reduced during this time.
Schneider Electric, the parent company of Square D, said the decision to close the Co Galway plant reflects significant changes in market demand for circuit breakers, resulting in overcapacity in the Group's North American Division manufacturing operations.
In a statement, the company said it very much regretted the market forces that have resulted in the decision to close the Ballinasloe facility, not least because of its very positive relationship with its employees located there and a very positive experience with Ireland as a manufacturing location.
'At this point our main concern is for the welfare of our employees, who have served the company well for up to three decades,' it added.
Schneider said the downturn in the telecommunications sector in 2000 had an abrupt and long-lasting impact in the environment for the circuit breaker businesses and it said it sees no prospect of a rebound that would enable it to avoid the closure.
It said it has decided to consolidate its manufacturing operations within North America, at existing lower-cost locations that are close to the markets they currently serve. In the last two years, 300 jobs from its US operations have been moved to Mexico.
Tanaiste Mary Harney has expressed her 'shock' at today's announcement and said the job cuts are a 'body blow' to the local community.
'I am not going to pretend that finding new investment and providing new sources of employment in Ballinasloe will be easy but I pledge to do everything that I can to say that it happens,' she said in a statement.
'The state agencies continue to aggressively market the area for investment and already the IDA is seeking to construct a technology unit in its business Park in the town,' she added.
