New Page Shutdown

Today's issue of the Sun Journal carries a story about a six-week maintenance shutdown of the Rumford mill to perform work on the cogeneration turbine. The story sounds reasonable enough until it gets to Tony Lyons' comments. "We continue to see a very volatile coated paper market," said Lyons, adding that orders are down at NewPage as well as at other mills. "The company is doing what it can do to balance supply and demand." The article also states, "He said mill customers will not be impacted by the hiatus in production because of existing inventory. The mill will continue to accept wood deliveries during the shut down."

"The high cost of electricity, together with the difficulty of acquiring wood and its high cost, contributed to the decision."

The article goes on to say, "Quarterly earnings changed significantly between the end of the first and second quarters for the Miamisburg, Ohio-based company. It owns nine mills nationwide."

The corporate beancounters are looking for any way to increase earnings, and this six-week shutdown certainly reduces expenses. Apparently, the Rumford mill's production is not needed right now to satisfy demand, but is this also an indication of things to come? If the corporation sees that it can continue to meet demand without Rumford's output, what do you suppose their next move will be?
As for the closing statement that, "The recent closure of a NewPage-owned paper mill in Kimberly, Wis., may beneficially affect the production of the remaining mills, Lyons said." That sounds to me like a PR person spouting the "party line" to appease the masses.

Watch your backsides, Rumford. There's smoke in the air, and where there's smoke, there's usually fire.

Kevin, what do you suggest?

The Pollyannas out there would say that it is positive that NewPage is putting money into the mill, but the fact is that the money is being put into the cogen, not production. Please note that the massive power station for which we had an emergency town meeting (illegally), has still not been developed. We gave up Railroad street and revenues from taxable property so that the mill could hurry up and do nothing. Has anyone heard of plans to invest in the paper-making equipment in the mill? When does #17 come on line?? The writing is on the wall, and it aint just graffiti. Our town had better come up with a plan on how it can operate if a permanent shut down does occur.

I am told that due to the big strike in the 1980s, most of the people who work in the mill now live outside of the River Valley, so the economic impact of the shut down will not be as difficult on our economy. Those who live away don't spend here anyway.

-Kevin

Admin wrote:Kevin, what do you suggest?

Len and I have discussed the development of a committee comprised of former town managers, selectmen, department chiefs or finance board members to divise a plan for operating our town based upon projections by financial professionals. It was considered that those currently in the positions would be consulted, but would likely be busy running their department and not have time to dedicate to the additional meetings.

KevinNSaisi wrote:The Pollyannas out there would

Is this how you “respond to intelligent discussion“?

T wrote:

KevinNSaisi wrote:The Pollyannas out there would

Is this how you “respond to intelligent discussion“?

T: I think it's time for you to lighten up and move on. As others have stated, the postings here are opinions that come with their own individual flourishes, idioms and expressions. If you take offense to the use of "Pollyanna", you need to grow a thicker layer of skin, IMHO.

Steve: I’m just pointing out Mr. Saisi's inconsistencies.

Not a thing Mr. Saisi says, or anyone else for that matter, bothers me personally. My career has kept me in the “public’s eye” for 30+ years. A “thick skin” is required. In this situation, I'm not the one who needs to develop one.

And as you stated, “the postings here are opinions that come with their own individual flourishes, idioms and expressions”. I assume you are including and affording me the same, though I have not lowered myself to “name-calling”.

T wrote:Steve: I’m just pointing out Mr. Saisi's inconsistencies.

Not a thing Mr. Saisi says, or anyone else for that matter, bothers me personally. My career has kept me in the “public’s eye” for 30+ years. A “thick skin” is required. In this situation, I'm not the one who needs to develop one.

And as you stated, “the postings here are opinions that come with their own individual flourishes, idioms and expressions”. I assume you are including and affording me the same, though I have not lowered myself to “name-calling”.

T: I most certainly am affording you the same latitude in opining the issues...but not the posters. As humans, we all feel passionate about one or more topics, and as humans we tend to voice our opinions more ferociously about those that we feel most strongly. By the same token, we all have "filters" that receive, analyze, and interpret what others say and do. Then we react or not according to our own value systems. Obviously, most of what Kevin posts goes straight through your filters, and you feel compelled to respond not only to the substance of the posts but to Kevin's style and personality. I do not condone "name-calling" either, but in this instance my filters processed "pollyannas" as an apt description and indicative of people who either cannot or will not recognize the potential disaster that will result from a permanent shutdown of New Page Rumford.
I'm reminded of the story about putting a frog into a pot of boiling water - he will probably jump right out. But put that same frog in a pot of cold water and apply heat, and he will stay right there and cook. With the myriad problems facing the U.S. economy in general and the paper/wood products industries in specific, the Rumford "frog" is in the pot of cold water. New Page is feeling the fiscal pressure is likely to turn on the heat; and the "pollyannas" do not even recognize that the pot exists. If I still resided in Rumford, I would be a squeaky wheel at Selectmen's meetings trying to get them to do some contingency planning because, as we've seen, New Page can close down a mill with only 30 days notice. I don't want my hometown to become an afterthought.

While no one likes to even consider it (much less talk about it) we need to. I've seen this happen to too many places - Google "Kannapolis, NC and Cannon Mills closure" for an example - to do nothing. Phil Blampied, of Grow Rumford, setup a blog back in December and tried to get people talking. Unfortunately, no one seemed interested in participating... Perhaps this news will help jump start the discussion?

http://www.freewebs.com/rumfordcitizens/

Regards,

Mark Henry

It seems like those who are working to attract business to the area are concentrating on industry or technology. I think industrial type businesses can't be counted on. If they are successful it seems they soon outgrow the US and move their production over seas. Or they can't compete with the imported goods and ultimately fail. I still think the key for this area is to promote tourism.
Bartlett, N.H for example, their largest businesses are Mt. Attitash and Storyland, both cater to the summer tourists. I think an amusement park would be a very good bet for this area. If we had museums and other entertainment along with good hotels or campgrounds I think it couldn't help but be successful. Not quite as much as a casino but perhaps a better choice for us....

Quick everyone, become panicked so you will vote for the casino!

Chuck wrote:Quick everyone, become panicked so you will vote for the casino!

If all you can offer to the discussion is sarcasm, you should probably keep your comments to yourself. On the other hand, if you want to behave like an adult and offer lucid, intelligent opposing opinions, you'll find that other posters will engage in civilized debate with you.

AP wrote:
Wausau Paper to eliminate 150 jobs in Maine


Associated Press
3:44 PM CDT, August 25, 2008

RUMFORD, Maine - Wisconsin-based Wausau Paper plans to close by year's end one of its two paper machines at its Otis Mill in Maine, eliminating about 150 jobs.

Spokesman Perry Grueber said Monday that the No. 10 paper machine targeted for permanent shutdown in Rumford makes paper that's used in the backing for adhesive labels. He says the company is committed to its other machine that makes different specialty papers.

Grueber says the date of the shutdown depends on orders but is expected by year's end. He says it's expected to eliminate 150 of the 235 jobs at the mill.

Maine Gov. John Baldacci is dispatching Rosaire Pelletier, his senior forest products adviser, to the mill on Tuesday to see if anything can be done to spare the job cuts.

Luckily, the Otis mill is in Jay (reporter error), but it is another case of closures hitting too close to home. I have asked the selectmen to put contingency planning on the next agenda. Let's see what happens.



Kevin

KevinNSaisi wrote:Luckily, the Otis mill is in Jay (reporter error), but it is another case of closures hitting too close to home. I have asked the selectmen to put contingency planning on the next agenda. Let's see what happens. Kevin

Look, I don't want to be the guy yelling that the sky is falling, but with lowering demand, rising fuel prices, and the dropping cost of offshore imports we need to take a serious look at what would need to happen should the mill close. We need both a short-term contingency plan, and a long-term offset effort (Economic Development Committee?) put in place NOW - BEFORE the mill closes. Waiting until they give the employees a 30-day notice is too late.

Mark Henry

Mark_Henry wrote:

KevinNSaisi wrote:Luckily, the Otis mill is in Jay (reporter error), but it is another case of closures hitting too close to home. I have asked the selectmen to put contingency planning on the next agenda. Let's see what happens. Kevin

Look, I don't want to be the guy yelling that the sky is falling, but with lowering demand, rising fuel prices, and the dropping cost of offshore imports we need to take a serious look at what would need to happen should the mill close. We need both a short-term contingency plan, and a long-term offset effort (Economic Development Committee?) put in place NOW - BEFORE the mill closes. Waiting until they give the employees a 30-day notice is too late.

Mark Henry

Mark,
I have asked the town to put this item on the next agenda. If they fail to do so, I will ask that they declare it an emergency and discuss it.
Kevin

Just caught this on tonight's news -

Katahdin Paper in Millinocket announced today that they have not been able to get a bio-generator in place in time to save their mill. They are closing indefinitely and have announced the layoff of 200 employees. The mill is being winterized now in the hopes that it can reopen should a new bio-generator plant be put in place, or the price of oil drop below $100/barrel.

Mark Henry

That's two today!!!!

How come no one mentioned this?

http://www.sunjournal.com/story/280730-3/RiverValley/Mill_decides_to_forgo_shutdown/

Chuck wrote:Since a couple of people jumped all over news of the mills shutdown and then have ignored good news for the mill for over a week now, it sure makes me think that the reason they are writing only about the bad news is to generate support for the casino.

Not everything is about the casino. Some of us believe in being prepared for the decline in tax revenue. The fact of the matter is that the mill will be paying less in taxes over the next few years even without a machine shutdown. With the laws passed on the state level, the mill's evaluation will be cut in half, which means that the taxpayers will have to make up the difference if budgets remain the same. On top of this, insiders have disclosed plans for #12 to be shut down within two years. We are way behind in efforts to build our tax base. If things don't change soon, it will become too costly to live in Rumford. This is why we cannot rely on the efforts of the Growth Council or other outside groups for economic development. We need a focused approach to budgeting that provides essential services, maintains infastructure, and encourages growth.

There are a number of projects going on in town now that spend money where it doesn't need to be spent. We need to have roads and sidewalks that are safe to use before we spend time and money on building new ones. If you walk downtown, you will see deteriorated sidewalks with holes in them and rusted metal strips sticking up. These should have been fixed before we even considered building a new athletic field by the high school. With one playing field and two practice fields in town, I cannot imagine why we needed another in these financial times. It is great to be visionary, but it is important that we prioritize efforts.

Until recently, the town manager has been too detached from the planning process. Management of the departments should be left up to the department heads, but the planning process should involve the board and town manager. The Comprehensive Plan is a guide for general direction. It is approved by the people. The annual planning needs to provide specifics for each department, and be approved by the selectmen. Historically, the board have not addressed many of these issues. They have been glorified permit stampers. The current board has attempted to provide direction, but been accused of micromanaging. Then, when they don't approve the requested budget, they are castigated for that. Well, if you cannot give direction and you cannot review and limit the budget, what is your purpose? Do these departments get to just run on their own and send the bills to the town without any restriction? No, it is the job of the town leadership to lead. The people authorize the money, and the selectmen provide direction and oversight. The town manager coordinates it all and supervises the department heads ( no really, that's his job). In supervising them, he provides them with direction and support to achieve the goals established by the comprehensive plan and the plan approved by the board.

If the selectmen don't provide the proper direction for our town, we will be in a tough situation financially. We can either build our community, or cut services. Just like in the business world, you either increase revenues or reduce costs. Special projects such as the walking trail by the library and the proposed redesign of the information booth parking lot are great, if you have maintained what you have. Unfortunately, previous leadership has held the line on the budget, letting buildings and infastructure fall apart. This must be reversed before we start spending on special projects. The library trail came from money the voters approved for sidewalks and the business park was built with money approved by the voters for road maintainence. The current board is working to keep these things from happening. Len Greaney is developing a plan that will be presented to the board for their approval. This will help direct our limited resources to restoring our infastructure.

By spending more wisely, we can make our community more attractive to new residents and business. If we bring in new business, we will have more jobs.More jobs means people in our community. With more people, come new houses for which taxes are paid. The more people who pay taxes, the less everyone has to pay.

So, it really isn't about a casino, it is about our community.

Chuck wrote:Since a couple of people jumped all over news of the mills shutdown and then have ignored good news for the mill for over a week now, it sure makes me think that the reason they are writing only about the bad news is to generate support for the casino.

Chuck, as the originator of this thread, I should have been paying closer attention to the progress. Unfortunately, I have a life beyond this forum, and sometimes I don't have the luxury of visiting it on a daily basis. As for the story, I am thrilled that New Page is not going to shut down as previously planned. That being said, it doesn't change the fact that the paper and wood products industries in this country are still in rough shape and getting worse. Despite the good news about the mill, Rumford and the rest of the River Valley should take the prudent step of developing contingency plans to prevent a death blow that would result from an unannounced total shutdown of New Page's Rumford mill. Finally, as I have said before, I am not necessarily advocating a casino for Western Maine, but some form of stable, profitable, job-providing business needs to be recruited for the area.

Chuck wrote:Since a couple of people jumped all over news of the mills shutdown and then have ignored good news for the mill for over a week now, it sure makes me think that the reason they are writing only about the bad news is to generate support for the casino.

Chuck, as the originator of this thread, I should have been paying closer attention to the progress. Unfortunately, I have a life beyond this forum, and sometimes I don't have the luxury of visiting it on a daily basis. As for the story, I am thrilled that New Page is not going to shut down as previously planned. That being said, it doesn't change the fact that the paper and wood products industries in this country are still in rough shape and getting worse. Despite the good news about the mill, Rumford and the rest of the River Valley should take the prudent step of developing contingency plans to prevent a death blow that would result from an unannounced total shutdown of New Page's Rumford mill. Finally, as I have said before, I am not necessarily advocating a casino for Western Maine, but some form of stable, profitable, job-providing business needs to be recruited for the area.