Imation to leave North Dakota plant by year's end

Imation, based in Oakdale, Minn., announced one year ago that it would phase out the plant's near 390 jobs by mid-2009, as part of a company-wide restructuring.

"We have accelerated our plans to exit our operation," said Brad Allen, an Imation spokesman in Minnesota. Fewer than 10 Imation employees will be at the plant by Jan. 1, he said Thursday.

They will be working with a group of former employees who have taken over part of the business to try to save jobs.

In August, a group of employees at Imation formed ComDel Innovation Inc., which has been using the largest of Imation's three buildings. It acquired manufacturing assets to supply current customers under contract, said Jim Albrecht, the company's president and one of the former Imation employees.

Allen and Albrecht said the startup of ComDel allowed Imation to close earlier, since ComDel now has taken over some of the contracts.

"Imation has been very gracious and has done a good job supporting us," Albrecht said. "We currently have roughly a dozen clients, and Imation is our largest."

Imation currently has about 188 employees, said Jane Priebe, the city's economic development director. Most of the jobs will be phased out over the next few months, Priebe said.

Albrecht said ComDel has hired 80 former Imation employees, and plans to have 40 more Imation workers on the payroll by year's end.

Imation had been the second-largest employer in the southeastern North Dakota community of about 8,500. Officials said its plant, owned earlier by 3M, opened in Wahpeton three decades ago.