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CITY OF INDUSTRY - Saint-Gobain Calmar Inc. has said it will lock the doors at its manufacturing plant in the City of Industry next year and move its operations to newly-built, automated facilities in Kansas City, Missouri, and San Luis Potosi, Mexico.

The company, a subsidiary of France-based Compagnie de Saint-Gobain, is a leading manufacturer of plastic spray pumps used to dispense, or mist, everything from cleaning products and perfumes to pharmaceuticals such as nose and throat sprays.

Calmar, which introduced the all-plastic spray pump more than 50 years ago, was acquired by Saint-Gobain in 1998.

According to press reports, the plant - in operation since 1961 - is scheduled for a "graduated" closure that will be completed by the end of 2005 with more than 140 employees affected by the move.

In a prepared statement, John McKernan, the company's president and chief executive, said that the closure is being prompted by continuing high production costs.

Increasing property and sales taxes, insurance and energy costs, and workers' compensation were cited by McKernan as the primary reasons for the decision to move the company's manufacturing operations out of the state.

"We continue to face price pressure and are convinced a dramatic solution is in order," he said.

He called the decision to close the plant near Los Angeles "a difficult one," but told the press that the move "was not a reflection on the firm's [City of] Industry employees."

McKernan stressed that Saint-Gobain Calmar's corporate headquarters and personal products division will remain in the City of Industry.

The new fully-automated facility in the Kansas City area replaces the company's older Lee's Summit plant there, he said.

The company employs about 2,200 worldwide, including almost 1,200 in North America, and has operations in the Asia, Europe, and North and South America. It reportedly $185 million in total global sales last year.

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