Hartz Mountain to leave Bloomfield
14 years 9 months ago #1
by misterpat
Hartz Mountain to leave Bloomfield was created by misterpat
Future exploration site?
Pet supply company Hartz Mountain will shut down its Bloomfield plant next year, laying off 180 employees.
The Secaucus-based company, which manufactures pet products including food and flea collars, announced the move to its employees this morning, giving employees 18 months notice.
The company’s director of engineering, George Engel, said the 14-acre manufacturing plant on Bloomfield Avenue, constructed in 1930s, is impractical and costs too much to maintain.
“For the time we’ve occupied the site, routine and even major repairs were common,” Engel said. “There are multiple buildings of different elevations that are not connected, and it’s very, very awkward to move materials through it in an effective way.”
The plant will be phased out by late 2011. Production at the plant will be transferred to a company facility in Pleasant Plain, Ohio, according to Hartz Mountain spokeswoman Anne Isenhower.
Company chief executive officer William Ecker released a statement.
“While we deeply appreciate the efforts of our associates who have worked hard to overcome the facility’s inherent shortcomings, we’ve determined that it’s ultimately in the best interest of the company to close down the facility over the next two years,” he said.
The employees were given the remainder of the day off after receiving the news morning, Isenhower said. She said the company will provide severance pay, and Bloomfield employees will be able to apply for jobs in other Hartz Mountain facilities.
The Hartz Mountain Corporation started as a bird food manufacturer in 1926, and expanded to include fish, dog, cat and other products by the 1960s. The company has about 40,000 retail outlets in the U.S. and Canada. It moved into the Bloomfield site in the early 1960s, according to Ecker.
The township’s director of community development Glenn Domenick declined to comment, saying it was too early to speculate on how the loss of the Hartz jobs will affect Bloomfield.
Roseann Gesario, who works at Columbus Bakery across the street, said many Hartz employees come in for breakfast.
“We sell them a lot of coffee and buttered rolls,” Gesario said. “It may affect our business.”
Pet supply company Hartz Mountain will shut down its Bloomfield plant next year, laying off 180 employees.
The Secaucus-based company, which manufactures pet products including food and flea collars, announced the move to its employees this morning, giving employees 18 months notice.
The company’s director of engineering, George Engel, said the 14-acre manufacturing plant on Bloomfield Avenue, constructed in 1930s, is impractical and costs too much to maintain.
“For the time we’ve occupied the site, routine and even major repairs were common,” Engel said. “There are multiple buildings of different elevations that are not connected, and it’s very, very awkward to move materials through it in an effective way.”
The plant will be phased out by late 2011. Production at the plant will be transferred to a company facility in Pleasant Plain, Ohio, according to Hartz Mountain spokeswoman Anne Isenhower.
Company chief executive officer William Ecker released a statement.
“While we deeply appreciate the efforts of our associates who have worked hard to overcome the facility’s inherent shortcomings, we’ve determined that it’s ultimately in the best interest of the company to close down the facility over the next two years,” he said.
The employees were given the remainder of the day off after receiving the news morning, Isenhower said. She said the company will provide severance pay, and Bloomfield employees will be able to apply for jobs in other Hartz Mountain facilities.
The Hartz Mountain Corporation started as a bird food manufacturer in 1926, and expanded to include fish, dog, cat and other products by the 1960s. The company has about 40,000 retail outlets in the U.S. and Canada. It moved into the Bloomfield site in the early 1960s, according to Ecker.
The township’s director of community development Glenn Domenick declined to comment, saying it was too early to speculate on how the loss of the Hartz jobs will affect Bloomfield.
Roseann Gesario, who works at Columbus Bakery across the street, said many Hartz employees come in for breakfast.
“We sell them a lot of coffee and buttered rolls,” Gesario said. “It may affect our business.”
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14 years 9 months ago #2
by hidinginshadows
Replied by hidinginshadows on topic Hartz Mountain to leave Bloomfield
potential future abandonment perhaps
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