Winchester Australia will cease ammunition manufacturing in Australia in 2019. According to their press release, the company will instead focus their efforts on importing and distributing ammunition, firearms and associated accessories.
Winchester Australia general manager Clive Pugh said the manufacture of Winchester products, which currently occurs in its Geelong factory, will be moved to Winchester sites in the US.
“As we shift out of local manufacturing, we will increase the import and distribution side of our business, expanding the use of our warehousing facilities in Geelong,” said Mr Pugh.
“The decision to cease local manufacture is no reflection on the talents of our manufacturing employees, who have served our customers and the company well. This was a difficult business decision that was driven by the need to provide our customers and end users with the best products from the global Winchester operations while reducing costs within the overall Winchester business.”
While it’s disappointing to see Australia lose the local Winchester plant, the company says it will be providing support, full entitlements and other opportunities to employees whose jobs will be jeopardised by the move.