Plant departure shows risk to state manufacturing jobs

Even as Nevada is one of the few states to record growth in manufacturing employment, it's not immune from the movement of jobs offshore.

Layoffs start in September at Wilson Greatbatch Technologies, a Carson City company that last week told 125 employees their jobs were being sent to Tijuana,Mexico.

Ray Bacon, executive director of the Nevada Manufacturers Association, cited similar moves of manufacturing jobs offshore.

Two years ago, the RTP Company, a maker of molded plastic computer cases, closed in Dayton to reopen in Taiwan.

Four years ago, LSP Products, a plumbing parts molding plant, closed in Carson City to reopen in China.

Eight years ago, Smithers-Oasis,maker of floral foam, closed in Dayton to reopen in Asia and Latin America.

Competitive pressures are growing on easily shippable products, says Bacon.

Electronics, being small and light, are easy to manufacture and ship anywhere in the world.

Conversely, heavy, bulky products like sheetrock will never move offshore.

"Transportation cost is becoming the significant factor in global manufacturing," Bacon said.

Jobs also move offshore to follow the customer base, said the head of the state manufacturers association.When computer makers moved overseas,makers of computer cases had to follow.When artificial flower makers moved overseas, the maker of floral foam had to follow.

When northern Nevada companies close shop here, employees do not follow the plants to foreign shores.

"In every case we made sure those people got new jobs," said Bacon."We use our network to let other people know the skills these workers have available."

The Nevada Manufacturer's Association has about 400 members.

The Wilson Greatbatch facility opens this month in Mexico, said Larry DeAngelo, senior vice president of administration and secretary of the publicly traded company that manufactures and sells medical devices.

It employs 13,000 nationwide,with locations in New York, Maryland,Massachusetts, Minneapolis and California.

The Carson City location was acquired in 2001 when the parent company acquired Sierra-KD from Maxwell Technologies, Inc.

DeAngelo cited "greater efficiencies" and "consolidation of facilities" as reasons for the move, and said it has nothing to do with Nevada or the local labor force.

Asked if lower wages paid across the border were an issue, DeAngelo said Wilson Greatbatch was opening a large manufacturing facility in a New York location."Would lower wages be an issue there?" The cost of running a manufacturing plant in this country is 22.4 percent higher than elsewhere in the world, said Bacon.

The cost issue is not labor, but the burden of federal regulatory compliance.

"Japan, for instance, has a better environmental record, yet runs its environmental protection program for one-tenth the cost," he said.

John Felesina,manager of the JobConnect office in Carson City, said the agency immediately contacted Wilson Greatbatch to offer its services.

Last year JobConnect provided training when a dozen assembly workers of miniature model railroad cars at Model Die Cast in Carson City lost their jobs because the work was outsourced to China.

"It doesn't happen often," said Felesina.

"The Carson City JobConnect office mostly handles recruiting for area companies."

A combination of programs will be offered to employees at the Carson City location, whose jobs range from engineering to assembly.

The year-long relocation process includes severance pay depending on length of service and retention bonuses for those who stay on to help with the transition.

Outplacement services, onsite training and language skills will be offered in-house, while work with the state may include job fairs, said DeAngelo.

The company's human resources department had not yet asked JobConnect for help with outplacement services, said Felisina last week.

Federal law requires a company to give 60 days notice to employees if more than 50 people will lose their jobs.

A for sale sign goes up next month on the 23,840-square-foot Carson City plant, situated on 3.66 acres at 5200 Sigstrom Drive in the Carson

Industrial Park near the airport.

Terms of the sale will wrap around the moving timeline, says DeAngelo.