Essroc Shuts Down Pennsylvania Plant, Possibly For Good

Essroc’s cement plant in Bessemer, Pennsylvania is being idled with the possibility of closing for good.

Employees at the plant were told on Monday that it will shut down effective in April and will stay closed until at least the third quarter of this year.  The plant employs about 110 people.
Essroc North America told workers last month that it was conducting a study on whether there was enough business to keep the local plant operating.
Marco Barbesta, a company spokesman, said the study found that Essroc has too much production capacity to keep the Bessemer operations going. The recession has greatly reduced the demand for cement.
Layoffs will occur on a gradual basis as the plant winds down its operations.  A bare-bones staff will stay on to manage the property.
Barbesta said the closing of the plant could become permanent based on business conditions. That decision will be made by the end of the year.
The company’s North American operations are based in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, but it is a subsidiary of Italcementi Group, an Italian company.

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