Against a backdrop of declining demand from the automotive market, Plastic Omnium (Levallois / France; www.plasticomnium.com) is rationalising manufacturing resources and within the next 12 months will cease production in Telford / UK, where it has moulding operations for the urban systems market (waste bin business) in addition to its automotive business. This has been hit badly by the closure of the Rover car plant last year and the forthcoming axing of the Peugeot operation in January 2007. Most of the moulding activity will be transferred to the company´s other UK site at Measham, Derbyshire, with the loss of an estimated 200 jobs at Telford, 170 from the automotive business and the others from the urban systems activities.

The Telford closure was confirmed as Plastic Omnium announced consolidated revenues up 13.8%, at EUR 1,728m, in the first nine months of the year. Sales of automotive parts increased 4.6%, but the company noted that car production in France and the US is expected to remain low for the rest of the year.