Staunton plant closure to cost 145 jobs

By Bob Stuart

Published: May 14, 2008

Unifi Manufacturing is closing its Staunton facility Sept. 30, a move that will eliminate 145 jobs that area economic leaders are hopeful of replacing.
Unifi manufactures polyester and nylon textured yarns and related materials worldwide.
Tom Caudle, vice president of Unifi operations, said in a Wednesday letter to area government officials that the Staunton facility is being closed to consolidate operations and reduce operating costs.
Caudle says the Staunton plant work will be transferred to the company’s Yadkinville, N.C., facility.
“By announcing the decision at this time, we are providing all employees with at least 60 days advance notice of their job termination,’’ the letter says.
Bill Hamilton, Staunton’s economic development director, said the loss of jobs for the area is not good news. Those losing jobs will receive help in developing resumes and assistance from the Virginia Employment Commission in locating new jobs, Hamilton said.
Hamilton said Staunton’s unemployment rate of 4.5 percent is now high enough to attract industrial prospects who might previously have looked elsewhere.
“This will help us some with industrial prospects who have viewed us as a tough place to consider when we had unemployment rates around 2 percent,’’ he said.
The Morris Mill Road building that Unifi is vacating is about 170,000 square feet, large enough to accommodate an industry with room for growth, Hamilton said. And he said the facility is in a good location, on the west side of Staunton near the 262 loop.
Hamilton said he had talked with Unifi in the past year, and said the discussions never included talk the company was leaving.
Ron Smith, Unifi’s chief financial officer, said the primary function of the Staunton plant has been to take the company’s manufactured yarns and put them on 4-foot to 6-foot beams and ship the beams and yarn to customers.
Smith said many of the company’s customers are located in the Southeast. Unifi products are used in both the automotive and apparel business.
“The automotive business has been impacted by the economy,’’ Smith said. And he said the transfer of the Staunton work to Yadkinville will save the company fuel costs.
“We have a lot of customers in the Southeast and that’s part of the rationale. Gas prices are a part of it,’’ Smith said.
The Staunton operation is the company’s only one in Virginia. The remainder of Unifi’s domestic operations are in North Carolina. Domestically, Smith said the company now employs about 2,500. 
The Unifi closing is indicative of an economy that is slowing down, but not one in a recession, said Ben Carter, president and CEO of the Greater Augusta Regional Chamber of Commerce.
“Even though we have some businesses closing, the economy is still good in this area,’’ Carter said. He said the Shenandoah Valley is holding its own.
Hamilton said Staunton’s recent economic news has included some positives, including the expansion of Carded Graphics in the city’s Green Hills Industrial Park that will add 35 jobs. He said the good news indicates the local business environment is still strong.
The other March unemployment numbers for the area showed Waynesboro at 5.1 percent and Augusta County at 3.6 percent.