Published: February 23, 2008 04:26 pm            

Editorial: A Blu-ray of hope for local economy

Sony’s formatting victory could help jobs picture

TERRE HAUTE — Finally, Terre Haute will endure the suspense of a mystery with a happy ending.

In recent months, the community coped with announcements of possible job layoffs or plant closings at International Paper, Pfizer and Great Dane. In some cases, it wasn’t a matter of “if”, but rather “when”. So the town waited for the other shoe to drop. Then it did. International Paper closed in October, ending 156 jobs. Pfizer stopped Exubera production here, forcing 660 employees out of work. At Great Dane, the truck trailer maker laid off 129 workers at its Terre Haute plant, and another 130 at its Brazil plant.

In deep need of some promising economic news, the Wabash Valley got it last week.

The Blu-ray formatted disc, manufactured by Sony at its flagship plant in Terre Haute, won the “format war” against its primary competitor, Toshiba Corp. Both companies manufacture excellent discs for new high-definition TVs. But Toshiba and Sony weren’t compatible with each other. Consumers who buy a movie for a Toshiba HD-DVD couldn’t play that same disc in a Sony Blu-ray, and vice versa.

So when Hollywood studios, electronics chains, retailers and video rental shops recently began opting for the Blu-ray format rather than HD, Sony scored a huge industry victory. Toshiba responded last week by announcing it was giving up on its HD format. The spoils of those marketplace battles should benefit Terre Haute, although the extent of the impact won’t be known for several weeks.

Sony is currently “defining all of our expansion and hiring needs,” said Shelley Klingerman, marketing manager at Sony DADC in Terre Haute. Those plans will be unveiled this spring, she added.

But the signs are already hopeful. The Terre Haute facility is in the process of hiring 15 engineers and 50 technicians.

New jobs and production expansion deepens Sony’s roots in this community. The company exhibited its faith in its Terre Haute work force, which includes about 1,200 employees making a variety of disc products, by investing $81 million in the Blu-ray manufacturing line. Terre Haute is the largest of three plants producing the Sony Blu-ray worldwide, and has been operating here since 1983.

“We’ve had success here, so that speaks for itself,” Klingerman said of the local facility.

In the meantime, the community anxiously awaits to learn the magnitude of Sony’s latest success.

        

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