Tower Automotive to Close KY, MD, IN Plants and Lay Off 800 Workers

NOVI, Mich. April 15, 2005; The AP reported that auto parts supplier Tower Automotive Inc., which declared bankruptcy earlier this year, said Friday it is closing three facilities and laying off 800 workers as part of a restructuring.

Tower said it will close plants in Bowling Green, Ky., Belcamp, Md., and Corydon, Ind., by June 30. It also will lay off employees at a plant in Granite City, Ill.

"As we go through our restructuring process, we must take all necessary actions to make Tower the most efficient and competitive company possible," Bill Pumphrey, Tower's president of North American operations, said in a statement.

Tower isn't revealing how much it expects to save from the closures, spokesman Doug Morris said.

The Belcamp plant supplies frames to a General Motors Corp. plant in Baltimore that is closing next month, Morris said. The Corydon plant does welding, riveting and assembly on parts for the Ford Explorer sport utility vehicle, which has seen sales fall by more than 25 percent so far this year. The Bowling Green plant supplies two other Tower facilities, Morris said.

Novi-based Tower filed for bankruptcy protection in February, citing lower auto production volume and high steel prices. The company reported $787.9 million in assets and $1.3 million in debts at the time.

Tower is one of the largest auto suppliers to declare bankruptcy with more than 12,000 employees worldwide.