News

posted on 12 May 2008 09:52

Remember floppy disks? Those first removable drives, from the 5.25-inch ones to the smaller ones in plastic cases? They are still being made but in rapidly shrinking numbers. Imation is closing a tape cartridge case component manufacturing facility at Wahpeton in North Dakota which once depended upon floppy disk manufacturing.

By the end of the year less than ten of the current 188 Imation employees will be at the plant. About 80  staff in the workforce have formed a new company to use one building of the plant's three, CommDel Innovation Inc, which will fulfill existing manufacturing contracts and look for new ones using the skills and machinery it has. CommDel has existing Imation contracts involving making plastic and metal parts for tape cartridges. These will last for several years yet.

The formation of this company has enabled Imation to leave the plant sooner than intended.

Thirty years of Imation, and previously 3M, manufacturing at this plant is about to end.

^{[B&F staff.]}