A major plastics firm has confirmed plans to move production from its Tyneside factory to its bases overseas.
Chemson based in Wallsend, North Tyneside, forms part of the Austrian headquartered Chemson group which makes additives used in the manufacturing of PVC plastics.
The global group has now confirmed it will cease production at the Wallsend factory next month in an effort to cut costs.
The firm employs 80 people at the site and said that 64 people will be made redundant.
Manufacturing will be moved out of the 海角视频 and instead be carried out at the company鈥檚 plants in Europe.
The company confirmed it will, however, retain the site and around 16 staff members for its storage distribution, quality control and technical services team.
The roles affected are in production and engineering, as well as support roles from quality assurance, warehouse and admin.
A spokesman for Chemson said: 鈥淭he decision was taken after a Europe wide review of production capacity, which demonstrated that the group could service its markets more cost effectively from its plants in Austria and Turkey.
鈥64 jobs will be lost as a result of the restructure.
鈥淐hemson is working with the GMB Union, offering pension and financial advice, giving time off for interviews and plan to work with MTrec employment agency to register anyone interested from September onwards.
鈥淐hemson鈥檚 customers will have the benefit of being served by the group鈥檚 larger manufacturing sites in Austria and Turkey with an extended product portfolio available.鈥
The firm did not say whether Brexit had impacted its decision to move its manufacturing out of the 海角视频 and said that the decision had been based on the 鈥渂usiness and financial benefits of capacity rationalisation鈥.
However, in the firm鈥檚 most recent accounts covering the year ended December 2017, Chemson directors said that the referendum and 鈥渙ngoing uncertainty due to the Brexit negotiations鈥 had affected the 海角视频 market.
According to Chemson鈥檚 financial accounts operating profit at the group fell over the last three years with the firm posting a profit of 拢368,000 in 2015, 拢160,000 in 2016 and then an operating loss of 拢729,000 in 2017.
The loss was made despite turnover at the company increasing from by 拢1.7m during 2017 to 拢23.4m.
Despite the falling profit figure Chemson had continued to grow its headcount in the North East. In 2017 the company employed 81 members of staff, up from just 53 in 2014.
North Tyneside MP Mary Glindon said: "This is clearly a deeply disappointing decision for those affected and for the wider economy of the North East. I will
urgently ask ministers to do all they can either to persuade the company to rethink or, more likely, to ensure that all workers receive all the benefits to which they are entitled."
