Houze Glass may close doors
Floods, fires and other natural disasters couldn’t destroy one Fayette County factory during its century-plus existence. But Houze Glass in Point Marion is apparently falling victim to current economic trends.
Workers there on Friday said company officials informed them they will shut down the factory, founded in 1902, and move the business to a facility in Texas. The factory employs 56 workers.
However, the company, in a letter issued Friday afternoon, said it is “considering all possibilities, including immediate closure.
“The last 18 months have been a very difficult time for Houze. During this time the company has discussed with the union details of the financial condition several times. This was the major topic of discussion at the 2003 contract negotiations and again this past March when the company requested concessions from the union in an effort to reduce costs and survive,’ the letter, signed by David Weimer, Houze Glass Corp., said.
“The company and union met today (Dec. 8) to discuss recent events that have greatly impacted its ability to continue operations. Specifically, the company’s note with its bank has been called, and its insurance carrier has refused to renew its policy for 2005.’ Weimer said immediate closure is being considered as one possibility “due to these events and numerous other business factors.’
The letter was sent Friday afternoon by fax after several phone calls by the Herald-Standard were made to the Point Marion factory but were not returned.
But workers and a union representative were adamant that the company told them the factory is closing.
Brenda Murray, vice president of the American Flint Glass Workers of North America union local representing Houze workers, said the company notified workers on Wednesday of the closing.
“We asked a lot of questions when we were in the meeting if there was anything we could do or even could we try to buy it. The Wilson Brothers (a New York company) have the controlling interest and they are the ones that want to shut it down,’ Murray said.
“This has been our lives for years. A lot of people are upset,’ Murray added.
She said workers will meet on Wednesday “to see what things will be available from the company, get information about our pensions and any training that might be available. Dec. 22 is when production is to shut down and there will be a few people here after that to do inventory.’
“We are joining the group at Anchor Hocking,’ Cindy Fisher, a 29-year veteran at Houze Glass, said.
She was referring to the Nov. 4 announcement made by Anchor Glass Container Corp. that it is shutting down its South Connellsville factory and displacing about 300 workers.
“It’s devastating to all of us,’ Fisher said, adding that there are about a half-dozen couples among the Houze workers who will find themselves searching for new jobs.
“We are one of those couples,’ she said, explaining her husband, Terry Fisher, has also worked there for 29 years.
“It’s not like we are 18- or 20-year-olds who can go out and get another job with health benefits. More than half the people here are over 50,’ Fisher lamented.
“Where do you find someone who is going to pick you up and provide health benefits? We need help. I don’t know if being fired would have been easier to deal with.
“We have always said we are going to be shut down. But we have survived a long time.
“We have a 14-year-old son and 21-year-old daughter. But some of the people here have kids in elementary school. There are a lot of kids who are going to be affected by this.
“We weren’t prepared for this. We had a union meeting this past Wednesday. The company led us to believe we were going to have a 20 percent cut on our pension. When we went to the meeting, they told us we have to close Dec. 20. Now, we’re wondering if we are even coming back to work tomorrow,’ she said.
“This place has gone through disasters. This place was under water in 1985 (during widespread flooding in November) and it came back from that. Then it caught on fire and we have had so many layoffs on and off for years. It just seems like we had big orders from Avon, Arby’s and Pepsi. Then all of a sudden it’s all gone.’
Fisher said it’s also ironic that Houze at one time received products from Anchor Hocking in South Connellsville.
Situated along the Monongahela River, Houze was nearly washed away in 1985. The company closed to make repairs and reopened the following year. L.J. Houze, a Belgian immigrant, founded the firm. He was a specialist in manufacturing sheet glass.
During the 1930s and 1940s, the Point Marion facility led the market in making lenses for military goggles and sunglasses. Nearly all the military used lens products during World War II that came from the Houze factory.
That market fell away following the war. But Houze changed direction, manufacturing a low-light-transmission glass used in windows. This market also began to drop off during the 1960s. Yet, Houze took a spin-off from it to once more capture markets. There were blocks of glass that were unsuitable for use in the windows. Houze bent and decorated the blocks, which would have been waste products, turning them into “adtrays.’ This was the foundation for Houze entering the field of specialty products used in advertising.
Houze business has been centered on imprinting designs and images on glass and ceramics.
Houze has had several owners during its more than 100-year history, including DGW Co., which was controlled by former Miami, Fla., financier Victor Posner, who was charged in the 1980s with tax fraud. It was also once owned by Evans Enterprise of Pittsburgh. Bruce Paparella, a Wall Street financial/investment consultant, bought it in 1994.
At its peak, Houze had as many as 900 employees.