Benteler Steel/Tube closes its plant at Rothrist AG

In a press release on Tuesday, the company is reacting with this step to the tense situation in the welded pipe market, which has been going on for years around the world.

The plant specializes in the production of quality, welded, drawn pipes for the industrial and automotive sectors. According to the group, the focus is on components for the driveline of vehicles with internal combustion engines.

the situation is tense

Demand is constantly falling. The Rothrist factory was particularly badly affected by this development. The situation in the welded pipe market has been tense worldwide for years. One reason for this is export restrictions due to customs duties in international markets.

It was stated that this would lead to huge overcapacity and enormous cost pressure in Europe. The group, which has an annual turnover of 7.3 billion euros, stated that it will immediately initiate the consultation process with the employee commission.

The group said the shutdown was successful, despite intense efforts, numerous optimization measures in recent years, and attempts to improve competitiveness and reorganization.

Heavy loss current year

Products from the Benteler factory in Bottrop (D) were also produced in Rothrist to increase capacity utilization and thus reduce production costs. However, it was not possible to sustainably establish the plant at the Rothrist site.

Earnings forecasts continued to assume that the current year would run a large deficit. Also, there is no trend that opposes this development.

In a statement, Swiss Employees asked the company to re-examine the decision. The 300 employees affected by the layoff will need to be supported in their new job search.

The knowledge of the employees for the sector should be protected. The employee organization stated that the Benteler example at Rothrist should serve as a warning to other industrial companies. (SDA)

Source :Blick