The overall economy has been growing at a steady pace through the first two quarters of the month, but that doesn’t jobs are any safer.
Caterpillar just announced that it is shutting down three component facilities in Illinois.
The sites, all Anchor Coupling facilities which make or distribute hydraulic hose assemblies for both Caterpillar and other equipment manufacturers.
The facilities shutdown and affected job is an attempt to cut costs and boost efficiency.
The company says the three facilities were spread out in Illinois basically doing the same thing, which one facility can do.
Existing employees will have opportunities for relocation to the combined site in the Upper Peninsula for Illinois-based workers.
Caterpillar’s shutdown of three facilities come on the heels of a series of plant closures or consolidations for the company, which shed 10 percent of its total work force — about 13,000 employees — last year according to news and investor relations reports.
The shifts include the closure of a Pulaski, Va., coal hauler plant and the planned shutdown of a marine engine plant in South Carolina that was announced in April. Jobs at that latter facility are expected to be moved to other facilities in Georgia and Texas.
Caterpillar representatives said the decision to shutdown is not about the performance of the three plants, but rather about improving efficiency across the component manufacturing footprint and reducing the cost structure driven by three independent facilities, while providing the highest quality products to it customers.
