Pilkington to move 100 glass staff

Oct 8 2007

GLASS giant Pilkington is to move around 100 employees from its site at Alexandra Park in St Helens to its European Technical Centre at Lathom, near Ormskirk.

The company has submitted a planning application to West Lancashire Council to create more office space at Lathom, where it already employs 450 people.

The expansion will involve the relocation of the workers in a number of support functions and non-UK business teams, based at Alexandra Park in St Helens, to Lathom by the end of 2008.

They will join the large number of support functions that are already based at Lathom including purchasing, research and development, engineering and also members of the automotive senior management team.

The majority of Alexandra Park employees, including UK Finance, Building Products UK, pensions and information systems will remain.

In a statement Pilkington said: “The company currently employs around 450 people at Lathom and the objective of the move is to make the most efficient use of facilities there. There is a shortage of quality office accommodation in St Helens and over the past five years Pilkington has successfully leased space at Alexandra Park to other local businesses and organisations.

“This trend is expected to continue, with the potential added benefit of attracting new business to the borough.”

The company’s manufacturing facilities in St Helens, covering float glass manufacture at Greengate and Cowley Hill, rolled glass at Watson Street and other glass processing and sales facilities, will not be affected.

In February 2006, Pilkington agreed to be taken over by its biggest shareholder in a deal worth around £2.2bn.

The acquisition by Japan’s Nippon Sheet Glass, which already owned 19.7% of the company, meant Pilkington ceased to be an independent company for the first time since it was founded 180 years ago.

Nippon had previously worked together with Pilkington in research, development and engineering for automotive products and the pair drew up a joint marketing approach for Japanese vehicle manufacturers.