Lancaster Glass plant to close

"It´s a difficult day, to lose a manufacturing company, and one that is in the heart of downtown Lancaster," said Lancaster Mayor David S. Smith, who worked in sales and marketing at Lancaster Glass from 1994 to 1998. It is among the top manufacturing employers in Fairfield County. And as much as the job loss hurts, the closing also deals an emotional blow to the town.

Glass-making has been a hallmark of Lancaster, which also is home to the larger Anchor Hocking. The Ohio Glass Museum is located downtown. "It´s more than the sheer numbers of employees losing jobs, it´s about heritage," said Bill Arnett, Fairfield County´s economic development director.

The company was incorporated as Lancaster Lens Co. in 1910 and was known for producing a hand-blown glass reflector for the torch of the Statue of Liberty for its 50th anniversary in 1934. Lancaster Glass will be shut down because of "continuing declines in volume and profitability," said John B. Gerlach Jr., Lancaster Colony´s chairman and chief executive.

"Although we expect this action will ultimately contribute to improved financial performance of the company, we regret the challenges this creates for what has been an able work force and a solid community in which to conduct business," Gerlach said. Lancaster Colony was founded in the early 1960s when several glass and housewares companies, including Lancaster Glass, were combined. In 1969, the company entered the specialty foods business by purchasing T. Marzetti Co.

In recent years, specialty foods has become the company´s largest and fastest-growing division. In the last three months of 2006, the segment had sales of $192.6 million, about $70 million more than the combined sales of the glassware and candles and automotive divisions. Lancaster Glass "is outside of the current focus of management of the company," said Earle Brown, Lancaster Colony spokesman. "The focus at the company has been increasingly on food for a long time, and then, beginning last year, the company said it would do a hard review of all the nonfood operations."

Lancaster´s mayor said he spoke to company President David Gallimore, who told him the company is working with the employees, union and Fairfield County Job and Family Services on jobs and retraining for the workers.