Owens Illinois closes Muncie plant

Muncie Plant

To Shut Down;

337 Affected

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — Saying the 83-year-old facility has outlived its usefulness, Owens-Illinois, Inc., announced Tuesday it will shut down its Muncie, Ind., plant by Sept. 1.

Officials said the firm would do "everything possible" to help the 337 employes of the plant find other employment in the Muncie area. Those eligible will recieve severance pay, they said.

The plant has been producing face panels for color television picture tubes since 1964.

Sam Schillace, general manager for television products, said the plant's age and layout ''makes it impractical to adapt it to the production of the type of color television parts that now are required by the industry.

"Our larger modern plants at Columbus, Ohio, and Pittston, Pa,, are now supplying all of the needs of the available market and can continue to do so," he said.

The Muncie plant was built in 1890 by the Hemingray Co. to make glass insulators for use in the communications industry. Owens-Illinois bought the plant in 1933 and produced insulators and glass blocks there until 1966.