Uponor closes Saint John, N.B. pipe plant
Canadian Plastics
Canadian PlasticsCiting soaring transportation costs and the slumping U.S. housing market, Finland-based Uponor is shutting down its...
Citing soaring transportation costs and the slumping U.S. housing market, Finland-based Uponor is shutting down its Saint John, N.B. cross-linked polyethylene (PEX) pipe-making plant.
Approximately 80 people worked at the 60,000 square foot facility.
“The decision to close Saint John was based on economics,” the company said in a statement. “We were experiencing increased transportation costs associated with this remote location.”
The closure comes only four years after the company received provincial government funding to upgrade manufacturing technology. In 2004, Business New Brunswick provided the company with $255,000 to upgrade production lines and create 30 additional jobs.
Uponor has North American offices in Apple Valley, Minn., and Mississauga, Ont. The company will transfer the extrusion capacity in St. John to its Apple Valley manufacturing plant.
Uponor makes and sells PEX pipe for fire and radiant heating and cooling systems. The company employs 4,700 worldwide.
Receive the latest news about the Canadian plastics industry in your inbox every Tuesday! Sign up for Canadian Plastics‘ free weekly newsletter.
