180 employees worried about their jobs: Packaging manufacturer Vetropack is considering closing the factory in St-Prex

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Vetropack needs to finally pull the plug now. The Swiss glass packaging manufacturer plans to close its factory in St-Prex VD this year. The group’s only production site in Switzerland was no longer profitable, so Vetropack initiated the consultancy process. Nearly 180 jobs are at risk.

The Bülach glass packaging manufacturer has been adapting the factory in St-Prex for decades and has invested more than 50 million francs in the factory since 2010, company boss Johann Reiter said in an interview with the AWP news agency on Thursday. However, the economic sustainability of the region can no longer be guaranteed.

According to Reiter, the location suffers from its small size, the limitations of being located in the middle of dense development, and a lack of competitiveness in a market environment that has become much more challenging.

An investment of 30 million francs will be required

The trigger for the decision was the approaching end-of-life of the melting tank at St-Prex, Reiter said. “Life-extending measures” have been delaying the bathtub’s expiration date since 2016, but management now needs to make a decision.

Replacing the melting tank at the St-Prex plant will require an investment of 30 million francs. However, it is not economically possible for Reiter to imagine such an expenditure under current conditions. “More than half of the production goes to export,” the CEO said. This has a strong impact on profitability.

Majority of employees affected

Therefore, a consultation process was initiated. If a “viable alternative” is not found in this process, Vetropack will close the plant in 2024, more than 100 years later.

This situation will affect 180 employees. And shutting down the site will lead to the disappearance of many of these jobs. Reiter emphasized that efforts will be made to find socially acceptable solutions for all employees.

According to the manager, the Vaud factory currently accounts for 6 percent of Vetropack’s total capacity. In case of closure, Swiss customers will be supplied from other Vetropack facilities in neighboring countries. “This could be possible without any problems,” said CEO Reiter.

The future of the region is clear

The plant in the Vaud municipality of St-Prex is not far from Lake Geneva and the land belongs to Vetropack. Reiter did not want to speculate (yet) about what would happen to the area in the event of a closure.

Vetropack closed production at its headquarters in Bülach in 2002. The former industrial area remained a wasteland for many years. In 2012, two non-profit housing developers finally purchased the land – today the “Glasi Quarter” north of the train station is home to 580 apartments.

“Glasi” followed the same path as many other former industrial sites in Switzerland. They are called “Papieri”, “Suurstoffi”, “Lokstadt” or “Guss”. (SDA/month)

Source :Blick