Eastman Kodak Co. will eliminate two manufacturing operations at its Colorado site this year, resulting in the loss of 300 jobs, the company said March 24.
The company will shut down its printing plate manufacturing operation and a converting and packaging facility for motion picture films, and transfer production currently handled by those plants to facilities in Columbus, Ga., and Rochester, N.Y.
Some of the employees impacted by the move will be offered the opportunity to take other positions at the Colorado site or to transfer to the other Kodak sites.
After the shutdown of these two operations, the remaining activities at the Colorado site will be focused on the production of media for producing digital and photographic prints -- thermal media for digital picture kiosks and color photographic paper used by photofinishing outlets.
"I want to emphasize that these decisions were not in any way related to the performance of the site employees, which has been excellent," said Robert Gray, site manager. "These actions simply reflect the challenge facing all companies to be as competitive as possible in the current economic environment."
Gray noted that all employees who are involuntarily impacted would receive termination benefits, including severance payments, outplacement counseling, and continuation of medical coverage for four months.
