Ex-ADC factory in Shakopee to go dark

TE Connectivity confirmed Friday that it will shut down the manufacturing arm of its Shakopee facility and move that operation to Mexico.

About 144 factory jobs will be lost at the company formerly known as ADC Telecommunications. Another 228 engineering, finance, marketing and sales employees will keep their jobs and continue working at the Shakopee site.

Shakopee will also continue to be the national headquarters for the company's telecommunications network division, said spokesman Tom Peacock.

Workers were informed about the changes during meetings with managers Thursday. Production work is expected to stop during the next two to four months, Peacock said.

The Shakopee plant, which is one of about 80 TE Connectivity factories in the United States, manufactures sheet metal, plastic injection molding and connectors for fiber-optic cables that are used by Verizon, AT&T, Comcast and others.

The Shakopee facility is TE's last remaining Minnesota location and marks the latest in a series of changes.

Tyco Electronics bought that facility and the rest of ADC Telecommunications in December 2010.

Last year, TE Connectivity sold ADC's former Eden Prairie headquarters and moved about 200 engineering, finance and marketing workers from Eden Prairie to Shakopee.

Separately, TE Connectivity moved about 250 factory workers from Shakopee to Mexico and a few workers to New Mexico as part of a major consolidation plan.

With this week's announcement, another 144 jobs are being moved to Mexico.

Peacock said that most of the 144 workers will likely be laid off. But some will be asked to apply for other jobs at TE Connectivity.

TE has about around 100,000 employees and $13 billion in annual sales.