Spartech closes facilities as profit, sales drop - St. Louis Business Journal:

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The company posted a profit of $3.8 million for the threr months endedMay 2, down nearly 14 percent from $4.4 milliobn a year ago. Net sales dropped from $234 down 36 percent from $367 million a year Restructuring and exit coststotaled $3.7 millio in the second quarter, up from $600,00 in the prior year These costs were primarily comprised of employee work force reductions, facility consolidation and shutdown Spartech said it has nearlyh completed the consolidations of a packaginvg facility in Mankato, Minn., and a compounding facilityh in St. Clair, Mich., into other existinv facilities.
The company is also shuttingh downits “underperforming” sheet operation in Donchery, The company has startesd consolidating its sheet facility in Atlanta , and the shutdown of its specialtyt compounding production facility in Arlington, and a business which manufactured productzs for the marine industry in Rockledge, Fla. Thess consolidations and shutdowns should be substantially completw by the endthis year. The companhy has eliminated at least in addition to 440 jobs slashedfin 2008. The company said it also plands to save more money through temporary plant shutdowns and employesflex time.
“We continue to execute our improvementg plans and have now initiatexd morethan $80 million in anticipated annualizesd structural cost reductions and other earninges improvement initiatives,” President and Chief Executive Officet Myles Odaniell said in a statement. “We will continuer to take additional actions to further reduce our cost structures both in response to currentmarket conditions, but also to capitalized on additional improvement opportunities existing at Spartech.” St. Louis-based Spartecg Corp. (NYSE: SEH) produces engineered thermoplastic materials and moldede andprofile products. It had sales of $1.4 billion in fiscak 2008.