Wednesday, November 26, 1997
Coleman loses another major employer
By ROY A. JONES II / Abilene Reporter-News
COLEMAN -- For the second time in 10 months, Coleman is losing
one of its three largest manufacturers.
Dal-Tile International, which at one time was second only to
Stempel Manufacturing in providing jobs for Coleman residents,
will close its local plant Dec. 31 and move operations to Kentucky,
Dal-Tile officials announced Tuesday.
Stempel was lured to Amarillo last February by $4.35 million
in taxpayer-funded incentives, but is now up for sale after filing
for bankruptcy protection in September.
Meanwhile, its huge building here sits empty, mortgaged to
TexasBank of Brownwood.
Dal-Tile began making ceramic tile in Coleman in the early
1960s, starting with only six employees. After it became part
of an international company, it grew to 90 employees. Stempel
had a payroll of more than 200.
Dal-Tile currently employs 49 people, second among Coleman
manufacturers to Dry Manufacturing's 76 employees.
State Rep. Bob Turner of Voss, who doubles as executive director
of the Coleman Development Co., said Dal-Tile officials praised
the efforts of Coleman to keep the plant, but said the move to
Kentucky is "strictly due to economics."
"Bill Hanks, Dal-Tile's vice president of manufacturing,
told me there is just no feasible way to move the Kentucky operation
to Coleman or they would do it," Turner said. "They've
run out of room here, and up there they have a huge plant that
is just 60 percent utilized. It all boils down to a business decision.
"It's a severe blow to Coleman, no question about it.
As far as impact on the community goes I'm not sure that it is
not more drastic than Stempel leaving," Turner said.
"Stempel had a whole lot more employees, but a lot of
them were part-time, or worked for them just a short time and
were let go. Dal-Tex has really been a solid employer for a long
time."
Howie Nola, manager of the local plant since September 1996,
said Dal-Tile has worked out a severance package with local employees
that includes 60 days pay from the last day of work, vacation
pay for 1998, help with transfers for those who want to stay with
the company, and generous overtime in the next month as the company
builds up its inventory.
Turner noted the addition of some 80 jobs in Coleman in the
past year has been overlooked because of the major loss of Stempel,
and now Dal-Tile.
"Compare our population to Abilene's and it's like we've
created 1,700 to 1,800 new jobs," he said. "It hurts
when somebody leaves, but I'll bet you this: I bet there's not
another little town in Texas that has anywhere near the pre-existing
business space we have -- just ready for a coupla' companies to
move in."
(Coleman correspondent Billie Mercer contributed to this report.)
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Copyright ©1997,
Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps Publications
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