San Clemente-based ICU Medical Inc. plans to move production of its medical devices from Orange County to a newly acquired plant in Utah, the company said Tuesday.
ICU said it plans to shift plastic molding and automated assembly operations from its San Clemente base to Salt Lake City.
The move follows ICU’s $35 million buy earlier this year of the Utah plant from Lake Forest, Ill.-based Hospira Inc., a big ICU customer.
ICU, a maker of medical connectors and intravenous systems, said the decision to shift production to Salt Lake City marks a shift in plan.
“Relocation cost and operating cost comparisons favored the Salt Lake City production location,” the company said in a statement.
ICU didn’t bring up job losses in its announcement. ICU employs 178 people in San Clemente.
The company’s production isn’t heavy on people. The company has spent millions on factory automation and other technology. ICU’s San Clemente plant runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week, sometimes with no one around.
