James Hardie Industries announced on Jan. 15 that it will close manufacturing facilities in Fontana, Calif. and Summerville, S.C. within the next 60 days. The company aims to streamline its manufacturing footprint and boost productivity. The move is part of the company’s ongoing commitment to operations through its system of efficiency and sustainability initiatives.
The manufacturing operations of both sites, which represent approximately 6 percent of James Hardie’s year-to-date North American volume, will be absorbed by other facilities. The Fontana site’s Innovation and Research & Development functions will remain in operation. The closure of the Summerville facility affects 78 employees according to a WARN notice.
Aaron Erter, Chief Executive Officer, said, “During the past several years, James Hardie has made significant investments in modernizing our manufacturing facilities to improve efficiency, support our material conversion opportunities, and to better serve our customers. Following a comprehensive review of our manufacturing network, we have decided to transfer more production volume to our modern, advanced plants.”
Financial Impact
James Hardie expects the site closures and optimization initiatives to generate annualized cost savings of approximately $25 million beginning in the first quarter of fiscal year 2027. These cost savings are stated to be driven by reduced fixed costs and improved utilization across the remaining manufacturing network, and are incremental to any cost synergy savings related to the recent AZEK acquisition…