LOCK HAVEN, Pa. (AP) — Two central Pennsylvania factories have abruptly closed down, leaving almost 150 workers without jobs, a local official confirmed.
Fenco Automotive Products is filing for bankruptcy, said Mike Flanagan, president and CEO of Clinton County Economic Partnership, and its local plants include the former Champion Parts building in Lock Haven and Fenco-related Lock Haven Distribution, which was leasing warehouse space at the former Piper manufacturing building.
The closing was "a tough one," he told The (Lock Haven) Express (https://bit.ly/1956gdh ).
Flanagan said the businesses bought nearly all of the leftover equipment from the former Champion Parts plant in July 2005 and opened a few months later.
He said Fenco at one point employed more than 200 people, but the latest numbers indicate 147 employees at the time of closing.
Parent company Motorcar Parts of America Inc. said in a statement that subsidiaries Fenwick Automotive Products Limited and Introcan (Fenco) were expected to file for bankruptcy.
"While Fenco had made progress in its transition plans for the undercar segment since the acquisition, the cost savings and operational efficiencies were not sufficient for Motorcar Parts to continue its involvement with Fenco under the current financial structure," Selwyn Joffe, Motorcar Parts of America chairman, president and CEO said in a statement.
Flanagan said his organization would work with CareerLink to try to help the displaced workers.
"This area has had some type of automotive rebuilding for decades, from Champion to Autoline and then Drive-Plus," he said. "It's a tough business remanufacturing carburetors. It's not the same business it was 20-plus years ago."