General Electric Company to Close Winchester Lamp Plant

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--General Electric (NYSE:GE) (Fairfield, Connecticut) is closing a 455,000-square-foot lamp bulb manufacturing plant located on a 57-acre property in Winchester, Virginia. The facility is one of the last plants in the U.S. to assemble tungsten-filament light bulbs.

The facility is closing because the incandescent bulbs it manufactures will become obsolete because of new energy legislation that General Electric lobbied for two years ago. Employees are left wondering did General Electric support a bill that killed the traditional incandescent bulb, as more than 200 jobs will be lost, including salaried positions. Other incandescent plants are closing in Ohio and Kentucky, eliminating an additional 200 jobs. Some employees plan to retire and others are hoping to find jobs, or are facing the grim reality of pay cuts.

Plant Manager Joseph Cenin said that GE considered retrofitting the Winchester plant to accommodate the manufacturing of energy-efficient light bulbs, but the move would not have been cost-efficient. The plant was previously scheduled to close in July, but due to unexpected increases in demand for incandescent bulbs, the plant will remain open until September 24, 2010. Cenin will coordinate the operations for equipment removal, along with mechanical and electrical work. The site features two primary production areas; an automated warehouse; a dual power grid; city water and sewer lines; and an onsite storm water management pond.

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