Sylvania Plant in St. Marys PA Closed « on: December 20, 2019, 08:28:54 AM » Author: CEB1993
I don’t like to be the bearer of bad news, but I just learned that the 100 year old lighting factory that produced Sylvania light bulbs in St. Marys, PA has closed back in October. This tragic event is the result of cheaper labor costs overseas and consumers who don’t consider “Made in USA” an important factor. 175 employees in the small town of St. Marys are not unemployed and and the town itself has taken an economic blow. I had a bad feeling two years back when Ledvance bought out Sylvania and the American production.  Didn’t expect this at all, especially with the A19 LEDs that were made in the St. Marys plant and sold at Walmart.  Here’s an article that explains more: http://www.bradfordera.com/bradford/st-marys-light-bulb-plant-to-close/article_21e7bc57-b142-567b-bdb7-d6e8d135bc77.html I must have 50 USA made Sylvania light bulbs in my general use stash and a few in my collection.  Can’t believe those will become rare collectors’ items soon.
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	Re: Sylvania Plant in St. Marys PA Closed « Reply #1 on: December 20, 2019, 12:01:11 PM » Author: Silverliner
Yeah. They just couldn’t compete making LED lamps in the USA.
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	Re: Sylvania Plant in St. Marys PA Closed « Reply #2 on: December 20, 2019, 06:55:04 PM » Author: Patrick
Whenever a plant closes, the most common reason cited is too little demand.  Perhaps that's true, but I always question why that's the issue.  These lamps can be found at competitive prices at Walmart and Menards stores across the country.  If sales are poor, what could explain that?  Of course there is stiff competition, but that was true three years ago when they invested millions to re-tool.  Another point to consider is that at the time Sylvania would have been operating under the assumption that they would need to suspend the majority of halogen production by 2020.  That should have been part of their calculation when determining whether production volume would be sufficient.  Based on the Department of Energy's position at this time, sales of these lamps may proceed.  Therefore, if anything I'd expect potential output of all lamps the plant can produce to actually exceed original estimates.  Who knows, but my hunch is this is change in direction at the corporate level.  Several years ago they were stoked about modernizing North American plants, and then before you know it Drummondville, Versailles, and St. Mary's are all shut down.  If they were as dedicated to domestic manufacturing as they suggested, I feel like they'd at least give it a few more years before concluding it's not economically viable.
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	Re: Sylvania Plant in St. Marys PA Closed « Reply #3 on: December 20, 2019, 09:42:18 PM » Author: Silverliner
Don’t forget. Ledvance is now owned by a Chinese company called MLS. Several workers suspect the Chinese takeover to play a role in the shutdowns. They also cite mismanagement. I saw a new Sylvania F96T12/CWX the other night, made by Philips.
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	Re: Sylvania Plant in St. Marys PA Closed « Reply #4 on: December 21, 2019, 09:32:49 AM » Author: CEB1993
I knew Ledvance was owned by the Chinese, so I knew it was a bad sign when they bought out American operations of Sylvania recently.  Goes to show you business can be cut-throat and Ledvance will profit from the closure of American factories and produce the lighting products in China with cheaper manufacturing and correspondingly lower quality.  This is such a lose-lose situation because almost 180 Sylvania employees have lost their jobs and the quality of the products is going to decline once they outsource.  I heard the Sylvania factory in Mexico had the same thing happen recently as well with Ledvance shutting down their operations and putting another 180 people out of work. Talk about “progressive” and “beneficial” business decisions  On the other hand this may mean we see the formerly USA made Sylvania products coming from China obviously, but also France. I’m hoping the Osram factory in Molsheim France will send us some products under the Sylvania name because the factory has tooling for A-line lamps like the current LEDs and halogens. I hope so, because the the French made lamps were excellent quality, just as good as the USA made ones.
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	Re: Sylvania Plant in St. Marys PA Closed « Reply #5 on: December 22, 2019, 04:50:45 AM » Author: Silverliner
Yeah, I wonder if the A-line halogen lamps will be made in France. Most incandescent types are outsourced to China, unfortunately. I already am seeing new Sylvania packages with Chinese lamps. They seem to be decent quality though.
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Electrician.

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Power company: Southern California Edison.

	Re: Sylvania Plant in St. Marys PA Closed « Reply #6 on: December 22, 2019, 05:22:13 AM » Author: dor123
Ledvance also bought the operation of the European Osram Gmbh.
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