Limerick is to lose 55 manufacturing jobs with the closure of a hardrock tool plant in Shannon.
Boart Longyear, one of the first companies in the Shannon airport industrial estate, has announced its intention to close from November 2005.
The firm, which makes drilling tools for the mining and quarrying industries, has blamed a competitive global market and increases in the cost of labour and raw materials for its decision to close the factory.
"The move is driven by global market forces that have seen the hardrock tools industry face extreme pressure over the past decade. It is caught between no meaningful price increases and steadily increasing labour and raw material inputs," explains Boart Longyear president and CEO Paul Brunner.
Mr Brunner went on to confirm that Boart Longyear, which has its headquarters in South Africa, will be transferring the Shannon business to its factories in Wuxi, China and Mississauga, Canada.
The company has been an employer in the area for 45 years and at its peak employed over 200 people.
Over the past two years the company has been involved in a process of downsizing which has culminated in the announced closure.
The company plans to maintain a sales team of 13 people in the area.
