Haldex to close Missouri brake plant as it shifts production to Mexico

Swedish brake manufacturer Haldex Brake Products Corp. is planning to close its brake adjuster assembly plant in Blue Springs, Mo., and move production to Mexico. Haldex makes brakes and suspension components for heavy-duty trucks.

The plant closure is expected to affect 154 workers, with layoffs to begin on Dec. 13, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act posted by the Missouri Office of Workforce Development. The closure of the plant is expected to be permanent and to be completed by the end of 2020.

In a statement on the company’s website announcing the closure, Haldex says the move will “continue to streamline the production of brake adjusters by moving the production from the United States to Mexico.” The company referred to the Blue Springs closure as “the final step” in its plan to relocate its U.S. production outside the U.S.

In 2018, the company began the process of off-shoring its brake manufacturing by moving the production of brake adjusters from the U.S. to India, the release states. China, Hungary, Brazil and Mexico make up the rest of the company’s manufacturing locations.

Haldex cited “significantly lower” manufacturing costs in Mexico as part of its reason to close its U.S. production facilities. The company says it expects to save about $2.5 million on an annual basis. It also expects its 2010 fourth-quarter earnings to be affected by $2.7 million “as one-off costs related to the change in production.”