PITTSFORD, N.Y. -- SentrySafe on Linden Avenue will close by June 2016, according to a release from The Master Lock Company.
Last July, Master Lock Company bought the family-owned SentrySafe for more than $117 million. The nation’s leading manufacturer of personal safes has been in the Rochester area since 1930.
But on Tuesday, Master Lock announced its shifting all of its work to existing locations in Oak Creek, Wisconsin and Nogales, Mexico.
As a single father of two, the news came as a blow to SentrySafe employee Wayne Lindo.
“Everybody was heartbroken,” Lindo said. “Here was a good, good company, very good. Lot of benefits, lot of options, lot of stuff. I really enjoy working here and now this.”
The report came as a shock to local leaders as well. Pittsford Town Supervisor Bill Smith called it disappointing.
"One of the things that we can do and I will do, is to reach out to the management of Sentry Safe to see what role, if any, we can play in helping or at least helping to facilitate re-employment for the people who live here who are going to be affected,” Smith said.
In a statement, Master Lock Company writes:
This decision has been made to help us remain competitive in the marketplace by eliminating excess capacity in our domestic supply chain. We are optimizing our operational footprint by consolidating locations and adding meaningful scale to other existing facilities.
“This is the reality that we face,” Rochester Business Alliance President Bob Duffy said. “We face competition from other states, other countries. Mexico certainly is a place where a lot of manufactures have gone. We need to be more competitive in terms of our workforce, as well as costs, but this is a decision I hope that we have at least some luck in trying to get them to reverse.”
Some residents believe this move could be damaging to other businesses in the area as well.
“Just imagine, all the other businesses,” Pittsford resident William Magoffin said. “You got 350 potential customers for all these other businesses around here. If they lose one or two customers, that can hurt these smalls businesses very bad because they have to fight for customers now.”
While Master Lock says it will plans to provide severance to employees and is asking some employees to relocate, employees said it’s still just as upsetting.
“That’s crazy,” Lindo said about relocating. “That’s just too far. That is too far.”
Master Lock said it will begin migration of its capabilities in January of next year and it plans to have the center completely shut down by June 2016. It also said it plans to shut down its location in Cannelton, Indiana.