Jobs lost as metal firm closes down

MORE than 60 jobs have been lost after an aluminium smelting firm fell into administration.

FE Mottram, in Congleton, below, which manufactures secondary aluminium products, has temporarily ceased trading with the loss of 61 jobs.

Staff at the plant say they arrived for work on Monday only to be told that their services were no longer required.

Administrators from KPMG say they intend to preserve the Radnor Park Industrial Estate site in the hope of finding a buyer for the business.

Paul Dumbell, joint administrator and director at KPMG Restructuring, said the plant had been affected by the worldwide slump in car production.

Latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders showed that there were 134,858 new cars registered in the UK during May, a 25 per cent fall compared to last year.

Mr Dumbell, who is acting as joint administrator with Richard Fleming, said: "FE Mottram's secondary aluminium smelting operation has been hit hard by the global downturn and in particular, by the reduced level of orders from car manufacturers and the reducing level of metal prices.

"The administrators intend to preserve the site in Congleton with the hope of finding a buyer for the business."

KPMG said that the Mottram Group's Ferro-Titanium business in Sheffield and Dunstan and Wragg in Dronfield are not affected by the administration and continue to trade as normal.

FE Mottram (Non-Ferrous) was set up in 1973 and makes casting alloys, hardeners and de-oxidants. With a 25,000 tonne production capacity, it is one of the biggest companies of its type in the UK.

One former worker, who asked not to be named, said: "We were given no indication that anything was wrong whatsoever. When we arrived at work on Monday, we were told to go home.

"I've been here more than 25 years and there's lads who've been here longer than that. It's just not right."

Cheshire East councillor David Topping, who represents Congleton Town West, said: "This is very bad news. Congleton can't afford to lose employers like FE Mottram. We've been trying to work with companies on the Radnor Park Industrial Estate, but sometimes things are taken out of our hands."

He said: "I sympathise with all the people who have lost their jobs. We're working hard to create new industries, particularly in tourism, to ensure that the future of employment in Congleton remains robust."