Bradken may close city foundry

BRADKEN could shut its Dunedin foundry by the end of the year — affecting almost 40 workers — but staff may have to get through a lot of work in the meantime.

‘‘Workers have been told their jobs are finished in November but we’ve got all this work coming through,’’ said one worker, who declined to be identified.

He was worried they might need to rush to hit deadlines.

‘‘We push our a... and we get no thanks for it. And now they’re closing us.’’

Bradken has not declared emphatically that the Hillside Rd foundry will close.

However, in a statement issued on July 15, the company said closure at both Dunedin and Ipswich, Queensland, was the most likely outcome.

The company indicated it would welcome interest from possible buyers.

Chief executive Simon Linge said Bradken would focus on the mining sector and move away from being a diversified manufacturing company.

‘‘Moving away from these markets we have served for a long time was not a decision that was made lightly,’’ Mr Linge said.

‘‘We understand the impacts it has on our people, many of whom have been part of Bradken for a long time, and we are committed to supporting them to make this transition and take the next steps in their working lives.’’

Bradken has operated in Dunedin for 56 years.

Thirtyseven staff work at the Hillside Rd foundry and two more employees are sales people in Christchurch.

Work would be ‘‘ramped down’’ in Dunedin in the next five months, the company said in its statement.

In 2012, KiwiRail put the Hillside Engineering Group on the market, Bradken buying part of it.

Last year, the Government announced it would pump $20 million into the Hillside workshops to revitalise them.