Sandvik restructures operations within Valenite
Sandvik has decided to restructure production within the US-based tool manufacturer Valenite, which was acquired by Sandvik in 2002 and is organized within business area Sandvik Tooling.
The facility in Gainesville, Texas, is being closed as well as three small production units in South Carolina. Instead, production of cemented-carbide tools is being concentrated to the plant in Westminister, South Carolina, which is being expanded and upgraded with modern manufacturing technology.
About 80 persons will be redundant at the plant in Gainesville. In South Carolina, the affected employees, totaling about 200, are being offered jobs at the new facility in Westminister.
In order to further enhance the company's competitiveness, Valenite is being fully integrated into Sandvik Tooling's distribution network in the NAFTA region. At the same time, Valenite's customer offering is being strengthened through a large number of introductions of new products based on Sandvik Tooling's technology platform.
- In many areas, Valenite will be the best in class, says Anders Thelin, President of Sandvik Tooling. As a result of these changes, Valenite gains modern and cost-efficient production, a fast and flexible distribution and a world-class product portfolio.
Sandviken, 11 December 2003
Sandvik AB; (publ)