AGC to Shut Down Line at Kingsport, Lay Off People
December 23, 2011

By Sahely Mukerji, smukerji@glass.com

AGC Glass Co. North America of Alpharetta, Ga., will lay off more than 100 people at its Kingsport plant, says Chris Correnti, chief counsel for AGC. The plant employs about 300 people and produces primarily solar glass.

"The K1 line will shut down at that plant, but the second furnace will continue to operate, as will some of the ancillary operations there, like tempering," Correnti says. Whether the laid-off employees would be offered positions at other plants has not been determined yet, he says.

The primary reason behind shutting down the K1 line is that "the solar business has been reducing, and is being taken over by Chinese suppliers that offer products at cheaper prices," Correnti says. "So, there's not much demand for our product. The solar industry worldwide is in a significant slowdown. Combine that with the bulk of Chinese imports and it's a pretty tough business right now."

As a company, AGC America planned for these contingencies, Correnti says. "Hopefully, the architectural market will improve some next year and so will the solar market, so this particular decision will not have any more impact than anticipated," he says.

"We're still expecting to rebuild that line in the not so distant future, as the solar market picks up, hopefully in the next couple of years," Correnti says. "It's a temporary, unfortunate situation."