Released on November 5, 2008

Clow Valve, Oskaloosa, Iowa, has experienced a slight slowdown in recent months that has caused it to cut back production and allow its staff to shrink.

“We have not laid off anyone in our [metalcasting facility], but we’ve lost a few by attrition,” said David Cummins, the company’s human resources manager. “We have not cut back a shift, but we have taken days out for production.”

Clow, a division of the McWane Corp., Birmingham, Ala., operates iron and brass metalcasting facilities, a machine shop, an assembly line, finished goods warehousing, shipping and administrative offices at its Oskaloosa location. Last January, the metalcasting plant employed 143; the division now has 135 employees. According to Cummins, only about 10 metalcasters have been lost since the company’s peak employment.

The company’s Oskaloosa machine shop recently was forced to lay off 23. In all, Clow employs between 450 and 500. Its second plant, in Corona, Calif., manufactures and assembles wet barrel fire hydrants and maintains inventory of Clow products. Clow also operates a stocking warehouse in Piedmont, S.C.

“We’re definitely slow, but there’s not a [metalcasting facility] that isn’t right now,” Cummins said. “We’re still producing castings, the same shifts we always have.”