Smurfit Westrock is closing a facility in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed with the state this week.
The site produces “corrugated packaging such as standard cases, boxes and trays suitable for all industries,” Smurfit Westrock said on its website. Production will move to other facilities in Smurfit Westrock’s network, according to Robby Johnson, director of external communications for North America.
The shutdown will affect 100 employees, the company reported. Layoffs are slated for Oct. 4, according to the notice, and closing activities will be complete by mid-October. Outplacement assistance will be available for impacted employees and eligible employees may apply for open positions within the company, Johnson said.
Smurfit Westrock recently celebrated its one-year anniversary following the combination of Smurfit Kappa and WestRock. On a second-quarter earnings call last week, CEO Tony Smurfit said the company would “continue to optimize our system through the elimination of non-strategic or inefficient assets,” as it targets eliminating 600,000 tons of capacity.
This follows announcements earlier this year about closures in Illinois, Oregon, Minnesota, Texas and internationally, impacting hundreds of workers across the company. These layoffs spanned production of containers, corrugated products, containerboard and coated recycled board.
The company maintains a presence elsewhere in Iowa, including a folding carton plant in Clinton and a sheet plant in Des Moines.
