Navistar to close Chatham plant, move production to Mexico

WARRENVILLE, Ill. (Oct. 18, 2002) — International Truck and Engine Corp. said yesterday that it will close its Chatham, Ont. assembly plant early next summer and shift production to Mexico.

The company said closing the plant, which produces International’s 9000i series class-8 highway tractors, is necessary to address competitive market conditions.

In July, the company reached a two-year contract with the Canadian Auto Workers union, which said the company would not close the plant before June 1, 2003. The Chatham plant is currently operating on one shift with about 1,000 employees. In addition to active workers, there are another 1,200 union workers on layoff status.

The exact timing for the closing of the plant will be announced at a later date.

“This has been a very difficult decision, but this decision in no way reflects on the performance of our Chatham employees and the quality trucks they build,” said Steve Keate, president of the company’s truck group. “Obviously, this decision was made only after exploring every available option to achieve the competitive cost structure needed given industry demand.”

Production of International 9000i trucks will shift from Chatham to the company’s Escobedo, Mexico, assembly plant. The plant opened in 1998 and is both ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 certified.

International Truck and Engine Corp. is the operating company of Navistar International. International Truck and Engine is a leading producer of mid-range diesel engines, medium trucks, heavy trucks, severe service vehicles, bus chassis