MARCH 23, 2021— ROARING SPRING, PENNSYLVANIA PLANT CLOSURE WITH 293 LAYOFFS
The financially-challenged company has announced that it will be closing its Roaring Spring, Pennsylvania paper mill on April 1, 2021, with 293 layoffs, including 250 employees and 43 managers.
Spring Grove, Pennsylvania-based Pixelle Specialty Solutions LLC, a manufacturer of specialty papers, on Tuesday said it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the company’s carbonless rolls and security papers business which will be produced at Pixelle’s specialty papers mill in Chillicothe, Ohio. No other assets were acquired.
The decision was driven by a pandemic-driven decline in business and the trend toward electronic forms and security products.
Part of the decision appears to be based on politics and the anticipated costs associated with upgrading the plant’s equipment to meet forthcoming climate change requirements. The company already upgraded its plant to meet emission standards set by the Obama Administration.
NOVEMBER 17, 2017 — Original post…
Appvion, a 100% employee-owned, Wisconsin-based, producer of specialty coated papers (thermal, carbonless, security, inkjet, digital specialty, and colored papers) has announced that it will be laying off approximately 200 employees as part of its Chapter-11 bankruptcy restructuring plan. The company has already outsourced its warehousing and distribution functions resulting in the loss of another 62 jobs.
According to management …
Our business is fundamentally sound; however, our debt load is too high. We have been proactively working on finding a capital structure solution to address our debt and remain in constructive discussions with our lenders on a comprehensive plan to significantly reduce our debt and enhance our cash flow.
While these discussions are active and ongoing, Appvion initiated Chapter 11 proceedings to facilitate a financial restructuring. This decision was made after careful consideration and after thoroughly exploring various alternatives.
We believe the steps we are taking will result in a sustainable capital structure that best positions our business for long-term growth and success. Our goal is to emerge as a stronger company – well-positioned to compete long-term and to further invest in innovation.
Since Appvion is 100% employee-owned, I wonder if any of those employees looked at the company’s financials and computed some of the standard ratios that might have produced early-warning red-flags; giving employees time to provide for their own fall-back positions?