Whirlpool Closes Plants; Kodak Cuts Jobs

DETROIT - Whirlpool Corp. said today it will close two plants and cut about 3,200 jobs in North America and Europe as part of a major restructuring. The moves will result in a $250 million charge against fourth-quarter profits.

The appliance maker will shutter a plastic-parts plant in Columbia, S.C., and a clothes-dryer plant Cambridge, Ontario, in 1995, eliminating about 900 jobs. Another 300 manufacturing and management positions will be cut in the South and the Midwest.

Whirlpool said it would cut 2,000 jobs in Europe, part of an ongoing reorganization of appliance-making operations it acquired from Philips NV in 1989. No plant closings are planned in Europe.

Whirlpool Chairman David Whitwam said the restructuring will reduce the company's costs and make it more competitive. Whirlpool has been profitable, posting record shipments and 41 percent higher profits in the third quarter.

"Our action is not a negative reflection on these employees or their considerable abilities, but rather a reflection of sharp competitive realities and the need for continued integration," Whitwam said.

The company said it expects to take a one-time charge of $250 million in the fourth-quarter to cover the restructuring. When completed, the measures should save Whirlpool about $150 million a year.

Whirlpool, based in Benton Harbor, Mich., makes 10 major brands of home appliances.

Meanwhile today, Eastman Kodak Co. extended its austerity

campaign, announcing 800 additional job cuts at the photographic company's hometown operations by the end of March. The company plans to slash 10,000 jobs by next year.

The latest reductions will affect Kodak's Worldwide Sensitized Goods Manufacturing unit, based at its sprawling manufacturing facility in Rochester, N.Y.