Snap-on to close two tool factories, cutting 560 jobs

The Macon Telegraph ^ | Tuesday, July 22, 2003 | The Associated Press

[Willie Green]

For education and discussion only. Not for commercial use.

MILWAUKEE - Snap-on Inc. will eliminate 560 jobs by early next year when it closes tool factories in Kenosha and Mount Carmel, Ill., the company said.

The Kenosha-based company will close two of its four plants that make hand tools and power tools, and work done at those plants will shift to remaining plants in Milwaukee and Johnson City, Tenn., spokesman Richard Secor said.

"This was a very difficult decision, given that these facilities have served Snap-on well for many years," said Jeff Eggert, vice president of Snap-on Tools Operations.

In Kenosha, 290 jobs will be cut while 270 jobs will be lost in Mount Carmel.

Snap-on cited "customer and competitive conditions" in making its announcement Monday.

The company will begin negotiating with unions representing the workers at both plants, he said.

Snap-on assured workers Monday that they will continue to have jobs until at least Oct. 1, when the company will begin to phase out production at the factories.

The cuts are in addition to 100 jobs already slashed worldwide, including 20 at its Kenosha headquarters and 10 at the Milwaukee hand-tool factory.

Snap-on has cut 1,200 jobs worldwide since early 2001 and employs 12,800 today, including 800 at its headquarters and another 200 in Milwaukee, Secor said.

Snap-on is scheduled to report its second-quarter earnings Wednesday. Snap-on's stock price, which traded in the $30 to $32 range in June before the company warned of slower sales, closed Monday at $28.05.

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On the Net:

Snap-on: http://www.snapon.com/

[lelio]

and work done at those plants will shift to remaining plants in Milwaukee and Johnson City, Tenn

Where's the Mexico / China / India connection in this? With automakers outsourcing more work to India, I would expect SnapOn to open a facility near those plants.

[Rebelbase]

The continued decline of American manufacturing capacity and ability. A couple of generations of this kind of decline will leave us a Nation of service idiots.

[q_an_a]

When a car has a 100,000 mile warranty it may be because it does not need as many repairs. Snap on is sold mostly to dealer mechanics and major shops not at Sears. Does it not stand to reason that they may not make as many tools because of the chnage in the quality of the auto products?

[Willie Green]

Snap-On is probably best known for selling their high quality products directly to the skilled workforce who use them. The fleet of Snap-On "Tool Trucks" visit factories on a regular basis so workers may conveniently make their purchases.
I doubt that this marketing approach would work in either Mexico, China or India since it is unlikely that manufactureres pay their workers enough to be able to purchase their own high quality tools.

[Walkin Man]

The job-loss recovery continues...

[ColdSteelTalon]

Got me a set of KOBALT wrenches (Made by Snap-on). They are fantastic.

I trust my knuckles to only American made wrenches and socket sets.

[m18436572]

How is it that as we move towards a "service economy", the "service guys" need less tools and equipment?

[m18436572]

Or are they guving up on American labor and opening up shop in China? That's where the market is anyway.

[You Dirty Rats]

Can't forget the Marketing angle here. The company lost it's best customers: Shrillary and the women of Bubba's cabinet.

[Xthe17th]

KOBALT wrenches (Made by Snap-on)
Sorry to burst your bubble, but unless you have an old set, Snap-On no longer makes Kobalt's (Lowes) tools. Too bad, 'cause I have some of their old sockets and the sizes are deep stamped and easy to read. New ones are very faint and SUCK!

[joesnuffy]

The Milwaukee plant on the northwest side is pretty new...

[DoctorHydrocal]

The company will begin negotiating with unions representing the workers at both plants..

Anyone want to bet the production is moving to non-union plants?

[Willie Green]

Or are they guving up on American labor and opening up shop in China? That's where the market is anyway.

No it isn't. As I explained to lelio, these are High Quality tools. Even if the cost is decreased by utilizing slave labor to make them, the offshore workforce just doesn't earn enough money to be able to purchase the products they make themselves. The globalist "cheap labor" theory of production violates the wisdom of Henry Ford:

There is one rule for the industrialist and that is: Make the best quality of goods possible at the lowest cost possible, paying the highest wages possible.

-- Henry Ford

"The high wage begins down in the shop. If it is not created there it cannot get into pay envelopes. There will never be a system invented which will do away with the necessity for work."

-- Henry Ford

Unless workers earn enough to become consumers, the market will not develop. And as long as globalists profit by keeping wages suppressed, those markets will continue to be undeveloped.

[Who dat?]

I doubt that this marketing approach would work in either Mexico, China or India since it is unlikely that manufactureres pay their workers enough to be able to purchase their own high quality tools.

The last set of metric wrenches I bought from Snap-On were about $230. You could hit up the Mac Tools guy for about 20% less, IIRC. I don’t even want to guess what I paid them for a timing light I bought once.

Their main attraction was that they’d put you on an EZ-payment plan so you could pay a certain amount each week. The Mac guy didn’t do that - he wanted the cash up front.

They are very nice tools, but are almost prohibitively expensive. They also disappear if you don’t keep them locked up. Mac tools (or Craftsman, for that matter) are good products that are priced closer to reasonable, IMO, but then they are not things I use every day anymore.

[Drew68]

SnapOn is selling a lot of non-SnapOn tools these days. You can buy the same exact Gearwrench off the SnapOn truck for three times the cost that you can buy it for at Sears. Both are identical tools and both have "Gearwrench" stamped on the sides.

Many SnapOn tools aren't even made by SnapOn anymore. Most of their air tools are made by Ingersoll Rand. Ingersoll, however, makes excellent air tools.

I've grown to really appreciate Mac tools. Their 72-teeth ratchets are the finest I've ever used.

[quark]

Distressing. Now what is Janet Reno going to use when playing "Hide the Salami" with Hellery?

[Willie Green]

Anyone want to bet the production is moving to non-union plants?

I doubt that is a significant factor in this instance.
Unless you're talking about the UAW and Big Three Automotive plants, organized labor is no longer the major manufacturing boogeyman that bashers try to emphasized. Nationwide, only 16~17% of the manufacturing workforce is represented by organized labor. The major shift has been toward representation of government workers and teachers where upwards of 40+% of the workforce is unionized.

It is likely that other factors determined which plants absorbed the production: which facilities already had the more modern equipment or room to absorb transfer of equipment, local tax/utility rates, local EPA regulations, etc. etc.

[Joe Boucher]

While buying a tool once from Sears, my stepbrother who is a mechanic stated that craftsman and snap-on have the same lifetime warrenty, but that snap-on tools didn't ever break.

[cruiserman]

Sorry to burst your bubble, but unless you have an old set, Snap-On no longer makes Kobalt's (Lowes) tools. Too bad, 'cause I have some of their old sockets and the sizes are deep stamped and easy to read. New ones are very faint and SUCK!

I agree. New Kobalt tools are not as well made as the ones from a few years ago.