MOSCOW (MRC) -- LyondellBasell Industries (LBI) is cutting 68 jobs at a former A. Schulman Inc. compounding plant in Worcester, as per RubberNews.
The layoffs were included in a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act (WARN) notice filed with the state of Massachusetts for the week of July 19. The first effective date for the layoffs is Sept. 30.
Officials with LBI in Houston could not be reached for comment.
LBI acquired Fairlawn, Ohio-based Schulman for USD2.25 billion in early 2018. That deal added 54 Schulman production sites to LBI's own 18. At the time, market watchers said that it was unlikely that all 72 sites would remain open.
In late 2018, Plastics News asked Jim Guilfoyle - executive vice president of LBI's Advanced Polymer Solutions unit, which includes the former Schulman business - about possible plant closings. He declined to comment on specific locations, but said that the unit "has a lot of integration ahead of us, but we also have platforms for growth."
Guilfoyle, at that time, pointed out that LyondellBasell plans to achieve USD150 million in cost synergies from the Schulman acquisition through several steps, including better logistics and procurement.
"We're still working through the plants," he said. "We need to optimize the footprint. We're looking at LyondellBasell sites as well as Schulman."
Schulman had acquired the 120,000-sq.-ft.Worcester plant in 2012 when it paid USD36.5 million for ECM Plastics Inc., a maker of custom compounds and color and additive concentrates. ECM employed 140 at that time and had annual sales of USD40 million.
A. Schulman, Inc. is a leading international supplier of high-performance plastic compounds, composites and resins headquartered in Akron, Ohio. Since 1928, the company has been providing innovative solutions to meet its customers' demanding requirements. The company's customers span a wide range of markets such as packaging, mobility, building & construction, electronics & electrical, agriculture, personal care & hygiene, sports, leisure & home, custom services and others. The company employs approximately 5,200 people and has 54 manufacturing facilities globally. A. Schulman reported net sales of approximately USD2.5 billion for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2017.
LyondellBasell is one of the world's largest plastics, chemical and refining companies and a member of the S&P 500. LyondellBasell manufactures products at 55 sites in 17 countries. LyondellBasell is also a leading licensor of polypropylene and polyethylene technologies. The more than 250 polyolefin process licenses granted by LyondellBasell are twice that of any other polyolefin technology licensor.
MRC