International Motors informed the state of Ohio last week that it will lay off up to 1,341 employees after it reached a deal to sell its Springfield, Ohio, plant to Roshel Defence Solutions.
Canadian Roshel designs, builds and tests heavy armored vehicles and secure transport systems for the military, law enforcement and other government groups.
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The deal, which is expected to close in October, is for International’s plant at 6125 Urbana Road and the truck specialty center at 5975 Urbana Road. It coincides with the sunsetting of International’s CV series, which was manufactured at the facility.
“It is further expected that all of the company’s Springfield operations at SAP and TSC will be concluded by the sale closing date and that virtually all employees who are employed by the company at those locations will be terminated from employment with the company effective that date except for employees who are on certain types of leave of absence as of the sale closing date,” a letter from International says.
This is the second major shift in commercial vehicle production in less than a week after Daimler announced last week it will shift production of Freightliner and Western Star trucks from Portland, Ore., to the Carolinas.
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Some of the employees are represented by the United Auto Workers Union and will receive negotiated agreements. Other employees not covered by those collective bargaining agreements may be offered severance pay terms and benefits contingent on certain terms and conditions.
Roshel says it intends to commence work at the Springfield locations at some point. In March, it says it plants to use the facilities to expand its production of commercial, special and armored vehicles.
“Adding this Springfield facility, with its rich history, to our U.S. footprint strengthens our ability to support U.S. defense and commercial automotive programs locally,” says Roman Shimonov, CEO of Roshel. “it will allow us, along with our partners, to combine the expertise of the Springfield workforce with our advanced manufacturing capabilities to address a broad range of evolving customer requirements.”
Samara Strycker, executive vice president and CFO at International, says in March that the deal represented a successful path forward for the plant.
“We have been focused on finding a buyer that values the capabilities of this historic facility and the community,” Strycker says. “We believe this path forward positions the plant for long-term success while utilizing the manufacturing expertise developed in Springfield over many decades.”
The plant has more than 2 million square feet of manufacturing space on 500 acres including a full assembly line and paint booth.
