Largest paper-clip factory in North America set to close in Pleasant Prairie

Wisconsin soon will no longer be home to the largest paper clip factory in North America.

Acco Brands plans to shut down its paper clip factory in Pleasant Prairie by the end of this year and move its production to Booneville, Miss.

Fifty-four jobs will be eliminated, starting Oct. 26, as a result of the move, according to the closure notice filed with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development.

The factory makes at least half of the paper clips sold in North America and is thought to be the largest plant of its kind in North America, said Rich Nelson, a spokesman for Acco, in an email.

“We originally intended to keep our manufacturing operations in Pleasant Prairie, but as we entered into lease renewal negotiations, it became increasingly clear that doing so was economically unsustainable,” said Nelson in a statement.

Acco owns its factory and warehouse in Booneville while its facilities in Pleasant Prairie are leased.

The equipment for making paper clips will be shipped to Mississippi.

Acco, based in Lake Zurich, Ill., had revenue of $1.9 billion last year and owns a stable of venerable U.S. and European brands for office, school and art supplies.

They include Swingline and Rapid staplers; Mead office and school supplies, Wilson Jones office supplies, Derwent sketching pencils and At-A-Glance and Day-Time datebooks.

The plant in Pleasant Prairie — opened in 1997 by General Binding Corp. — also makes stapler cartridges and wire coil, Nelson said in an email. Production of the stapler cartridges will be moved to a plant in Hestra, Sweden, and the wire coil will be outsourced.

Six of the 54 positions identified in the closure notice have been or will be reassigned to the company’s headquarters or to Booneville.

The company also said 13 employees not included in the closure notice will be relocated to a new plant in southeastern Wisconsin or northeastern Illinois where the company will continue to assemble laminators.

Those operations are now in Pleasant Prairie. Booneville and Prentiss County in Mississippi plan to give Acco tax breaks worth $250,000 over 10 years, the Associated Press reported last month. In addition, the Mississippi Development Authority would provide $300,000 to complete a railroad crossing and $50,000 for worker training.