Following a review in its Minerals Consumables business area in EMEA, Metso has decided to discontinue operations at the rubber and poly-met wear parts manufacturing facility in Ersmark, Sweden.

Metso announced back in September it was starting “personnel negotiations” to review the implications at rubber and poly-met wear part production units in Ersmark and Trelleborg, Sweden. It has now decided to ramp down operations at Ersmark in stages from the beginning of the June quarter, with full closure expected in September quarter, it said.

The decision affects approximately 150 manufacturing related positions in Ersmark.

Sami Takaluoma, President, Minerals Consumables business area, said: “Our strategy is to improve productivity and reduce logistics costs by building on the most efficient manufacturing and sourcing opportunities at a regional and global level to ensure the best value and availability for our customers.

“During the negotiations, we evaluated the EMEA region as a whole and came to the conclusion that consolidating the rubber and poly-met manufacturing operations in Sweden was the only feasible solution.

“This is a very unpleasant yet necessary action. Going forward, our focus will be on ensuring a sustainable transition for Ersmark as well as uninterrupted service to our customers.”

The company concluded: “Today, Metso is the leading player in the rubber and poly-met mill lining business with a strong service network in all the main mining markets. In addition to Ersmark, Metso has another factory continuing synthetic wear part production in Trelleborg, Sweden, and nine other factories for synthetic solutions globally.”