SEPTEMBER 2008 From PPG:
With demand declining for automotive and residential window glass, PPG Industries, Pittsburgh, realigned its performance glazings business, according to a Sept. 24 company release. The company will cease production at its Owen Sound, Ontario, glass manufacturing facility in the first quarter 2009. Shipping and distribution of products there will continue until inventory is depleted, according to the release. One float glass line at the Mt. Zion, Ill., plant will be idled in the second quarter next year.
The plant and unit closures coincide with rebuilt, higher-throughput lines reopening at PPG glass plants in Carlisle, Pa., and Wichita Falls, Texas, according to the release. They also are affected by PPG’s July 8 announcement of the pending sale of its automotive glass and services business to an affiliate of funds managed by the private equity firm of Kohlberg & Co., LLC.
“This realignment will enable us to adapt to the changing demands of the industry,” said Mark Orcutt, vice president, performance glazings, in the release. “The changes are part of PPG’s transformation of its performance glazing business and will help to improve our focus on profitable market segments and value-added products.”
Orcutt specifically cited specialized glass for the emerging solar market and energy-efficient glass to satisfy evolving building codes fueled by the green building movement, which is driving the commercial construction market. The realignment of profitable business segments, he added, will strengthen PPG’s glass operations and enhance the company’s ability to meet the needs of customers who seek coated and high-performance glass products.
“PPG invests very heavily in the development of new products and technologies,” Orcutt said, in the release. “So it’s important that we leverage this in markets that value and reward scientific advance.”
In addition, as part of the business transformation, the company is investing $100 million in various projects to improve productivity at its remaining glass facilities, according to the release. “In addition to the higher throughput lines coming onstream in 2009, we’ve identified several opportunities to improve efficiency and expand operations at our other glass plants,” Orcutt said, in the release. The $100 million capital investment program, which includes both equipment and process upgrades, is expected to be completed by the fourth quarter 2009. |
