GST AutoLeather Inc. (formerly Garden State Tanning) has said it is to relocate the remainder of its US cutting operations to Mexico before the year end. The move will see the closure of its cutting plants at Williamsport, Maryland, and Reading, Pennsylvania, and the opening of a new plant in Nuevo Laredo, just south of the Texan border.
In a statement, GST said the new plant would take advantage of lower wages and shorter supply lines as the company already ships a high proportion of its output to automotive plants in Mexico. GST already operates a cutting plant at Saltillo in Mexico employing around 900 workers and a cutting plant in Zhongshan, China. The new plant will see the creation of around 200 new jobs.
The development follows GST’s agreement with Richina Leather in relation to a new finishing plant in Shanghai, China, (see leatherbiz.com story 28.10.03 ‘SRL and Garden State pave the way for Shanghai tannery expansion’). Under the agreement, the US company will handle the marketing of the plant’s output in non-Chinese markets. Speaking to the local media, Bobby Colvin, president of Local 658T of the Union of Needletrades, Industrial & Textile Employees, said he expected the company’s finishing plant at Williamsport, Pennsylvania, to close once the Shanghai plan becomes operational.
The world’s third-largest auto leather producer, GST AutoLeather’s customers include Toyota, Ford, Chrysler Honda and AM General. The name change was unveiled earlier this month together with a new logo in the style of an upmarket auto badge and the tagline ‘Driven to Think Smarter.’
