Production will shift to the company's other UK site in Wigan

Production will shift to the company's other UK site in Wigan

Clariant is to end masterbatch production at its Watford facility and will concentrate UK production at its Wigan site. The Watford site will continue with its customer service and warehouse operation but is expected to shed up to 19 jobs. There will be five new jobs created at the Wigan factory.

The new positions in Wigan will be offered to people being made redundant in Watford, said Malcolm Hurst, general manager of Clariant Masterbatches UK. There are no plans to close the Watford facility, he told PRW.com.

The move, which will take effect from 1 August, follows installation of two new extruders at the Wigan plant (PRW.com 2 June). This increased colour masterbatch production capacity by approximately 1,000tpa, which will offset the loss of capacity at Watford, said Hurst.

The Wigan plant also moved to a 24-hour working basis earlier this year in order to offer improved service levels.