SCHOTT to Restructure Duryea Plant

The decision will affect up to 80 of the 230 workers at its Duryea, PA plant and is scheduled to be implemented in March 2015.SCHOTT will provide outplacement services to displaced employees and, if available, offer alternative jobs at the Duryea plant and other North American SCHOTT locations.

The decision only impacts select optical glass production inside SCHOTT’s Advanced Optics Division. It does not affect SCHOTT’s non-continuous melting operations, which will continue to manufacture laser glass, infra-red glass, and other specific optical glasses. In addition, SCHOTT Duryea will continue to remain a trusted and reliable partner for its customers because the site will continue to perform as the Division’s North American customer service hub. SCHOTT’s North America Research & Development Center, also located in Duryea, is not affected by this decision.

SCHOTT Plant Duryea



“Worldwide demand for optical glass has been negatively impacted by the advent of smaller, hand-held technologies,” says Michael Brown, Site Manager of SCHOTT’s plant in Duryea. “Smartphones have decreased demand for traditional video and still cameras, thus necessitating the need to strategically restructure this portion of our business.”



By consolidating a portion of the optical glass production to its headquarters in Germany, the company centralizes its worldwide production of optical glass, which has been manufactured in Germany ever since the founding of the company in 1884.



“We remain confident and excited about the opportunities ahead of us utilizing innovative processes and materials that allow us to explore new and growing markets for Duryea,” says Brown.



About SCHOTT

 

SCHOTT is an international technology group with 130 years of experience in the areas of specialty glasses and materials and advanced technologies. SCHOTT ranks number one in the world with many of its products. Its core markets are the household appliance, pharmaceutical, electronics, optics, and transportation industries. The company is strongly committed to contributing to its customers’ success and making SCHOTT an important part of people’s lives with high-quality products and intelligent solutions. SCHOTT is committed to managing its business in a sustainable manner and supporting its employees, society and the environment. The SCHOTT Group maintains close proximity to its customers with manufacturing and sales units in 35 countries. Its workforce of 15,400 employees generated worldwide sales of approximately 1.84 billion euros for the 2012/2013 fiscal year. SCHOTT AG, with its headquarters in Mainz (Germany) is owned by the Carl Zeiss Foundation. www.schott.com