Chester County plant to close, idling 150
Quad/Graphics to shut Atglen site
Wisconsin-based Quad/Graphics says it will close its 455,000-square foot commercial printing works in Atglen, western Chester County, by the end of February, idling around 150 workers.
Quad/Graphics prints advertisements inserted into newspapers. The company has been buying rival operations in recent years, consolidating and upgrading newer plants as it closes others. Printers that serve newspapers have suffered as more readers access news online. Quad/Graphics announced plans to close its plant in East Greenville, Montgomery County, last fall. The company has 56 remaining U.S. plants, spokeswoman Nicole Mosca told me.
"This is disappointing for the the employees and Atglen community. It is another reminder that our economy is shifting and we need to help train people for the family sustaining jobs of the 21st century," Guy Ciarrocchi, president of the Chester County Chamber of Business & Industry, told me.
Neighboring Lancaster County and other Pennsylvania counties have seen an influx of retail warehouses and "fulfillment centers" serving online shoppers, including the new Urban Outfitters facility in Gap, about five miles northwest of Atlgen.