Somerset Foundries, a 100-year-old gray and ductile iron foundry in Somerset, PA, has issued a closing notice to workers, according to local reports. The news was delivered to approximately 30 employees at the close of business on December 30.
The federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act requires most employers with 100 or more employees to provide a 60-day advance notification of plant closings and mass layoffs. Reportedly, the foundry has reduced its employment level significantly in the past decade.
Employees and union representatives expressed shock and frustration at the news, though Somerset Foundries managers offered no comment.
Somerset uses green sand and no-bake molding to produce castings up to 18,000 lb, in gray iron, ductile iron, Ni-Hard and Ni-Resist iron. Iron is melted in a cupola furnace and two electric induction furnaces, and finished castings are supplied to numerous markets, including manufacturers of compressors, hydraulic pumps and valves, heavy machinery builders, machine tool builders, mining equipment builders, railroad suppliers, and a variety of others.