Ilion NY

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RemArms Wasting No Time

December 20, 2023 by

Now that RemArms has decided that the Remington plant in Ilion, NY will be closed, they are not wasting any time in selling off machinery that won’t be moved to Georgia. Indeed, there is an auction tomorrow that has 131 lots of machinery ranging from CNC machines to drill presses to milling machines.

The auction is online only and is being held by AllSurplus which is the surplus aggregator division of Liquidity Services, Inc.

Kingsbury Production Drill Machine

Most of the items for sale will require professional rigging services to load the items on 18-wheel flatbed trucks. According to the descriptions, some of these items can weigh up to seven tons. Many of the more valuable items such as CNC machines and broaching machines have reserves on them. Bids range from a high of $10,000 for a 2017 Unisig Gun Drill down to $25 for a number of smaller items such as belt sanders and drill motors. I don’t know the age of these machines but some such as a Delta drill press could date from WW2.

I imagine most of the equipment being sold is either not needed in the Georgia plant or would cost too much to move.

In addition to selling machine tools, RemArms has already been selling parts, frames, and other stuff. Dave Kiff of Pacific Tool and Gauge posted some pictures from the plant where he was buying the remainder of the Remington pre-bankruptcy Model 700 line among other things.

The saddest picture in my mind was this one. There were finished shotguns and rifles dating from the 1970s to present dotted with pigeon droppings.

Dave Kiff photo

Dave said it was like seeing a dying dinosaur waiting for its bones to be picked. That said, if you need older Remington parts, rifle chassises, stocks, AAC suppressors, etc., head to Pacific Tool and Gauge.

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Hello, LaGrange; Goodbye, Ilion

December 2, 2023 by 2 Comments

After 217 years, Remington is leaving Ilion, New York. RemArms LLC, the post-bankruptcy successor to Remington Arms, announced yesterday that they will be closing down the plant in Ilion and moving all operations to their new location in LaGrange, Georgia. The Ilion plant will close in March 2024.

From the Utica Observer-Dispatch:

“I am writing to inform you that RemArms, LLC (“the Company”) has decided to close its entire operations at 14 Hoefler Avenue, Ilion, NY 13357 (the “Ilion Facility”),” begins the letter ending two centuries of history. “The Company expects that operations at the Ilion Facility will conclude on or about March 4, 2024. The Company did not arrive at this decision lightly.” 

The layoffs should take place between March 4 and March 18, wrote Brian Wheatley, director of benefits and compensation for the firm in Kernersville, North Carolina, to officials with the United Mine Workers of America. 

The 270 workers at the plant are represented by the United Mine Workers of America. After saying the union had worked tirelessly with the company, the workers, and local officials to keep the plant open, they are calling this move a “slap in the face”.

The union contends that:

“The simple fact is that RemArms will never be able to match the experience and dedication of the workers in Central New York, who for generations worked in this plant and kept this company alive.

“We urge RemArms LLC to reconsider this decision and explore alternative solutions that would allow the Ilion plant to remain operational. The extensive cleanup for abandoning this plant could potentially cost the town of Ilion and the state of New York a massive amount of money.

Last November, Georgia officials including Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA) welcomed the news that Remington was moving their global headquarters to LaGrange as well as building an “advanced manufacturing operation” there. Remington also planned to put a R&D center in LaGrange as well.

Village of Ilion Mayor John Stephens told the Albany Times-Union that he was not surprised by the news.

Stephens said the pending move became clear over the last few years as more and more models of firearms production were pulled out of Ilion and moved to LaGrange, Georgia.

Currently, he said, the company still makes its popular 700-model hunting rifles and shotguns in Ilion. Previously, the factory also made firearms for police and military use.

Ilion is hoping to find another tenant for the historic Remington plant given the need to warehouse space in the region.

Remington posted a video announcement by CEO Ken D’Arcy of the decision to consolidate in LaGrange. In his announcement, D’Arcy made note that Georgia has been welcoming to the firearms industry. He said keeping the old plant going was becoming cost prohibitive and that legislative environment in New York was a major concern.

I don’t think any observer of the firearms industry is surprised by the news. Perhaps the real surprise was that they actually restarted the Ilion plant after the bankruptcy given its age and the toxic nature of New York politics. Losing a major employer always hurts and it especially hurts in such a small town as Ilion.

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Remington Arms Will Furlough Many Employees This Summer

May 30, 2019 by 1 Comment

Remington Arms will furlough up to 500 employees at its Illion, NY plant and up to 199 employees at its Huntsville, AL plant this summer. The upaid furlough will be from June 3rd until August 2nd.  The Ilion plant was already scheduled to be scheduled for a maintenance shutdown for the first two weeks of July and employees are getting paid leave for that time.

Ilion Mayor Brian Lamica had this to say to the Utica Observer-Dispatch:

Ilion Mayor Brian Lamica received word of the layoffs Tuesday. He was told that one of the product lines, employing about 280 people, will continue to run through the summer, but the rest will be idled.

“During that period there’s a normal two-week shutdown. That will be a paid vacation period for those who have paid vacation,” Lamica added.

He noted that Remington is planning to bring back the entire workforce Aug. 9.

“It’s not good,” Lamica commented of the move. “I’m optimistic things will pick up for them come early fall and everybody will be back to work. Two weeks is one thing, but two months — even though two weeks would be paid — I feel sorry for the workers and their families.”

The furlough could result in some workers leaving the area to find another job, the mayor said.

“I’ve been hearing rumors for about two weeks. I was hoping things would turn around. There’s too much in the warehouse and not enough being bought,” Lamica said.

According to the Rome (NY) Sentinel, no notice was given to the NY State Department of Labor as may be required under the New York State Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act. However, in Alabama, the Department of Commerce did receive notice and has said it will work to help the impacted employees.

No stories have detailed which product assembly lines will be affected by the furloughs.

Chuck Lester of the Village of Illion Board of Trustees was interviewed by Utica WIBX Radio and had more details in the video recording of it below.