GE Lighting recently made two announcements that it will close lighting plants in Kentucky and Illinois by August 2017.
The company stated that the planned closures have resulted from the lighting industry seeing a “major technology pivot” during the last decade away from traditional lighting products, including incandescent, halogen, and specialty linear fluorescent lamps.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — General Electric Lighting has announced it will close two plants in Lexington and Somerset by August 2017.
WKYT-TV (http://bit.ly/2b3rwJk ) reports that the company announced the closures of the Lexington Lamp Plant and Somerset Glass Plant would affect over 200 people.
The Lexington plant makes traditional, non-LED lighting products and employs 139 people. The Somerset plant makes halogen lamps and employs 71 people.
GE says in a statement that consumer demand for traditional lighting is at an all-time low. As a result, the company says it is operating at 15 percent capacity.
GE says the local union representing the workers has 60 days to ask for a different plan.
MATTOON, Ill. (AP) — General Electric Lighting has announced plans to close its lamp plant in the central Illinois city of Mattoon next year, unless its workers come up with an acceptable alternative for the facility.
GE said that the plant is operating 60 percent below capacity due to a decline in consumer demand for traditional lighting and the phasing out of incandescent bulbs. The company said GE Lighting in the future will focus on LED technology.
Mattoon Mayor Tim Gover told the Journal Gazette and Times-Courier (http://bit.ly/2aPfymZ ) the plant has operated for more than 70 years and at one time employed more than 1,800 workers. It currently employs about 140.
GE said if plans to close the plant proceed, operations will be phased out by August 2017.
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