Packaging company closing Fremont plant
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South Carolina-based packaging company Sonoco Products Co. is shuttering one of its Indiana locations. In a notice to the state, the company said it will close the Sonoco-TEQ facility in the Steuben County town of Fremont, affecting 63 employees.
The facility, which Sonoco has owned and operated since 2019 when it acquired Thermoform Engineered Quality LLLC (TEQ), manufactures thermoformed plastic packaging for a variety of end markets.
”As part of our ongoing operational improvement programs, we continue to evaluate our manufacturing footprint based on long-term economic viability and the ability to cost effectively serve our customers,” a company spokesperson said in an email to Inside INdiana Business. “Against this backdrop, we have made the difficult decision to close the Fremont facility.”
Fremont is located about 175 miles northeast of Indianapolis.
The first phase of the plant closure will take place in December, with some employees being retained for production and facility shutdown activities through the official closure date of June 1, 2024.
The spokesperson said the affected employees will receive a severance package and outplacement assistance from the company.
The employees are not represented by a union and do not have bumping rights.
Sonoco has additional locations in Indiana, including Akron, Edinburgh, Indianapolis, and Portland. The spokesperson declined to disclosed the company’s total number of Indiana employees.
Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story stated 53 employees were being affected. The correct number is 63.