Tustin thermal and impact printer maker CIE America Inc. has been sold by its Japanese parent and will be shut down by its new owner.
The company will lay off its remaining 24 employees, after having cut 26 workers since December.
The layoffs follow the sale of CIE by Tokyo-based trading giant Itochu Corp., the ultimate parent company, to El Segundo-based printer maker Citizen America Corp., itself a unit of Citizen Watch Co., a Tokyo maker of timepieces and electronics.
“We’re going to be out of business as far as the resellers and direct customers are concerned effective July 31,” said Chip Dorman, CIE America’s marketing coordinator. “And we’ll be transferring inventory to Citizen’s El Segundo warehouse next month.”
Citizen America is taking over customer and reseller sales and service for most of CIE’s printers beginning Aug. 1.
Irvine-based American Computer Hardware Inc. and Santa Ana-based Logical Maintenance Solutions Corp. will sell some of CIE’s printers.
The layoffs will include 15 CIE employees and nine Itochu Technology administrative support staff, an undisclosed few of whom will likely be retained and transferred to Itochu’s Santa Clara office.
Some of CIE’s OC employees may be transferred to Citizen America’s El Segundo operations.
All of CIE’s employees and operations, with the exception of field sales and service personnel, were in Tustin. CIE America, founded 25 years ago in Redondo Beach, had relocated its operations to Tustin about seven years ago.
“The market for thermal and impact printers is not growing that dramatically,there are a lot of players and there are declining profit margins,” Dorman said. “The shut-down didn’t come as a surprise to a lot of people working here.”
Itochu Technology Inc. officials reportedly will shift focus to the wireless sector.
Citizen will not be retaining the Tustin location and the OC site is available for sublease through CB Richard Ellis.
CIE seller Itochu Corp. is a global corporation with offices in more than 80 countries and operations that cover a broad spectrum of industries. Established in 1930, Citizen Watch is the world’s largest manufacturer of watches and other timepieces.
Citizen America Corp., Citizen Watch’s wholly owned El Segundo subsidiary that has assumed control of CIE America Inc., manufacturers thermal and impact printers, including machines that print bar codes. n
