NLM Decides Additional Restructuring in Al Architectural Materials

Nippon Light Metal (NLM) announced an additional restructuring measure for its aluminium architectural materials business on Friday. Shin Nikkei Company, NLM’s subsidiary for aluminium architectural materials, will shrink Funabashi plant in Chiba, Japan by 80% until August 2009 and reorganize the domestic production network. At the same time, Shin Nikkei will solicit additional voluntary retirement by 200 employees.

By this restructuring measure, NLM will post 8.9 billion yen extraordinary loss for its full-year accounts of fiscal 2008 (Apr08-Mar09), including 5.6 billion yen for impairment of productive facilities, 2.9 billion yen for premium severance pay and 400 million yen for plant transfer.

Shin Nikkei plans to suspend casting, extruding and coating processes in Funabashi plant and transfer these operations to Takaoka factory and Koyabe factory in Toyama, Japan. The firm will also transfer sash and exterior manufacturing processes partially to Toyama area and Fujioka plant in Tochigi, Japan from Funabashi.

Shin Nikkei will reorganize the rest productive lines of Funabashi plant. As a result, Funabashi plant will be downsized by about 80% and change into the productive site mainly for building architectural materials such as curtain wall. Suspended facilities and lands are scheduled to be utilized inside NLM Group.

At the same time, Shin Nikkei solicits voluntary retirement by 150 employees in itself and 50 employees in the group companies, following the previous worker downsize by 400 employees in 2008.