EVANSVILLE, IN (WFIE) -
Today Whirlpool informed employees of its Evansville, IN Refrigeration Product Development Center that operations in that location will close by year-end 2014.
There were about 300 employees left at the Evansville facility after Whirpool shut down production operations in 2009.
"I think a lot of us thought that once the manufacturing jobs left, it wouldn't be long before the research development team would leave also," said Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke.
It's not a huge surprise to some, including Greg Wathen, President and CEO of the Economic Development Coalition of Southwest Indiana.
"The company's looking at here we have an operation that's isolated from other things that we're doing, we have no other additional manufacturing there. Does it make economic sense? And obviously it did not for them to keep it there in Evansville," Wathen said.
Whirlpool says the decision will allow the company to centralize its refrigeration product development operations in North America. In the process, they say they'll add at least 180 jobs in Michigan.
Some Evansville employees may be able to relocate. Whirlpool says close to 30 percent will be eligible for retirement.
"We really don't know what the long term economic impact is going to be. It's probably more one of psychological impact," Wathen said.
That, Wathen says, is because of the presence Whirlpool has had in Evansville for more than 50 years.
"I think what we have to do, we can't dwell on what's not so positive. We have to figure out what we can do to spring forward. That's by focusing our efforts every day on, and encouraging investment by those companies that are here to grow and retain the jobs that we have. That's what we're working diligently to do on a daily basis," Mayor Winnecke said.
"This decision was difficult and in no way reflects on the quality of work in Evansville or the support from the local community or the State of Indiana," said Kristine Vernier, spokesperson for Whirlpool Corporation.
A current Whirlpool facility in the Benton Harbor/St. Joseph, Michigan area will be renovated to accommodate the Refrigeration Product Development Center. Investments in this facility will total $18.6 million including renovations and equipment.
14 NEWS UPDATE:
Whirlpool Corporation spokesperson Kristine Vernier tells 14 News that currently 217 people are employed by Whirlpool Corporation in the Evansville facility.
Vernier says, "Individual meetings with employees started this morning to determine, of those eligible, who is interested in relocation."
"If eligible, and interested, they will be offered a relocation package to move to the Benton Harbor/St. Joseph, Michigan area."
"Nearly 30 percent of our employees at Evansville will be eligible for retirement and may elect a retirement option. Others will receive a severance package and assistance to pursue new employment," says Vernier.
When asked about how and why the decision was reached Vernier said, "The U.S. economy has continued to stagnate, and demand for home appliances remains low."
"In addition, global competitors are continuing their predatory pricing strategies on refrigeration products, which has affected profitability in the refrigeration category, making the need for improved efficiency all the more important," says Vernier.
"We currently have product development teams in the Benton Harbor / Saint Joseph area that work on our cooking, dishwashing and laundry products."
"Centralizing refrigeration product development here will:
- 1) provide better collaboration with Global Consumer Design, North American product business teams, and other process partners,
- 2) better leverage other engineering resources at the Edgewater and St. Joseph technology centers, and
- 3) provide more flexible career opportunities for our employees by co-locating with other technology centers. This also will allow the company to more swiftly respond to changing market conditions and strengthen our ability to bring consumer-relevant innovation to the marketplace faster than ever before."
Related stories:
Whirlpool Cutting 1/4 Employees
Whirlpool to pay State of Indiana $800,000
Whirlpool development jobs staying
Whirlpool cuts first round of employees
Whirlpool cutting jobs nationwide
Copyright 2012 WFIE. All rights reserved.
