Caterpillar closing two manufacturing plants

Caterpillar is closing its factories in Aurora Illinois and at Gosselies in Belgium, with the loss of around 3,000 jobs in all. The Aurora facility makes wheeled loaders, with production being switched over to facilities at Decatur, also in Illinois, as well as North Little Rock in Arkansas. This will result in the loss of 800 jobs at the Aurora plant although there will be more personnel required at the Decatur and North Little Rock facilities that will offset the losses Meanwhile the firm says that the
April 4, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
178 Caterpillar is closing its factories in Aurora Illinois and at Gosselies in Belgium, with the loss of around 3,000 jobs in all. The Aurora facility makes wheeled loaders, with production being switched over to facilities at Decatur, also in Illinois, as well as North Little Rock in Arkansas. This will result in the loss of 800 jobs at the Aurora plant although there will be more personnel required at the Decatur and North Little Rock facilities that will offset the losses

Meanwhile the firm says that the closure of the Gosselies site will impact on some 2,000 employees. The firm first announced that it was considering allocating production at the Belgian facility to other manufacturing plants in September 2016. However the company has now made the formal decision to close the facility, so production of its products on the site will be gradually phased out. All production is expected to cease by mid-year 2017. The other operations and functions on the Gosselies site are expected to be gradually ramped down until the end of 2017.

Caterpillar Belgium has agreed to sell the site to the Region of Wallonia. Ownership of the facility will switch to the firm Sogepa, which is an investment company of the Region. In order to support reconversion of the site, Caterpillar agreed to sell the site plus some of the installations and assets for a symbolic euro. The sale is to be effective on 30th June 2018.
Earthmoving & soil compaction Finance & Funding

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Futureproofing UK construction equipment resilience
    May 5, 2021
    Rob Oliver is the longstanding CEO of the Construction Equipment Association (CEA), the UK trade association for the UK construction equipment industry. Guy Woodford recently caught up with him to discuss the industry’s health and the key issues facing the CEA and its members in 2021 and beyond.
    Read More
  • India’s massive demand for construction machines
    June 17, 2016
    India is the new focus for the world construction industry market. In 2015 there was a change in perspective in Asia, with demand for machines in China dropping in terms of construction growth. India posted growth of 5.3% during 2015, while China achieved growth of 4%. This change at the top has been confirmed by the SaMoTer-Verona Outlook. This is a construction sector observatory group set up in partnership with Prometeia, the international economic consulting and research firm, with the support of Una
    Read More
  • Lowering carbon emissions from cement and concrete production
    October 20, 2020
    Reducing carbon emissions from the energy intensive cement and concrete production sectors will help stop climate change
    Read More
  • Export intention for Lonking
    January 6, 2017
    Lonking plans to ramp up export levels – Mike Woof reports For Lonking, wheeled loaders form a major part of the firm’s business, although the company now has a well-diversified range. Product development has been important for the company and the third generation wheeled loaders are now coming to market. These new models feature new engines, while the firm is also introducing its second generation excavators and third generation forklift trucks. The third generation wheeled loaders will be available with e
    Read More

Highlighted Content