Cape, Malden face cuts at major plants

When manufacturing plants that provide jobs in our area make major investments in their facilities, it is usually taken as a good sign of stability and permanency. But this age of plant closures and economic swings has proven that reliable indicators of the past are not always so dependable.

As a result, recent announcements by Biokyowa Inc. in Cape Girardeau and Federal Mogul Corp. of Malden, Mo., have come as something of a blow not just to workers who are affected, but also to the communities in which they are located.

Biokyowa, part of the Japan's Kyowa Hakko, is discontinuing production of farm-grade amino acid lysine and food-grade nucleic acids but keeping its line of other food additives. Federal Mogul is moving its automotive piston manufacturing operation to Mexico.

The parent companies of both plants are world leaders in their respective areas. Kyowa Hakko develops, manufactures and markets pharmaceuticals, bio-products, agri-chemicals and animal-health products. Federal Mogul is one of the 15 largest automotive suppliers in the world.

In the past two years, the Biokyowa plant here has seen two major expansions, one costing $25 million and the other costing $50 million. Employment grew to 210 workers. At Federal Mogul, a $4.5 million expansion was completed in 1999, and employment rose to 400 workers.

The good news for Cape Girardeau is that Biokyowa not only plans to keep its plant open, it will spend $10 million to modify the plant, leaving its work force at about 165 employees.

For Malden, the news isn't so good. Since 1963, Federal Mogul has become the largest employer in the town of about 5,000 population. All 400 of its employees will lose their jobs.

The task in Cape Girardeau, where other plants provide employment opportunities, will be to prepare those being laid off to take other jobs or to retire. But in Malden the impact of Federal Mogul's closing will have far-reaching implications. Because of the small size of the town and the large employment numbers at Federal Mogul, most every aspect of the community, from retail sales to school-district revenue, will likely be affected.

For Biokyowa, the effort to maintain as strong a presence as possible in Cape Girardeau is to be commended. Despite market fluctuations and a sagging Asian economy, the company intends to continue production here of high-quality food additives, preserving the jobs of about 165 employees.

In Malden, the future is not so bright. Federal Mogul not only has been the largest employer, it also has provided some of the top-paying jobs in that town on the Dunklin-New Madrid County line between Dexter and Kennett. Community leaders there will have to work hard this month to find ways to offset the loss of 400 key jobs that is scheduled for Dec. 1.