Closing a manufacturing plant will have a catastrophic impact on nearby firms that rely on it for business, it has been claimed.

Staff at Interlink, in Lancing, downed tools yesterday in protest at parent company Kingspan’s decision to shut the site at the end of this month, with the loss of 58 jobs.

The plant makes metal construction equipment and is closing along with a site in Wealden Industrial Estate, Crowborough, which trades as Alsteel Fabrications Ltd, where a further 40 jobs will go.

Kingspan bought Interlink for £6 million in 1996 and Alsteel 18 months ago. The Dublin-based group is moving all its southern operations to Yorkshire, blaming the downturn in the construction industry.

But Mark Scott, production manager at Interlink, said both staff and customers are dismayed at Kingspan’s decision because they say the site is still profitable.

He said: “Morale is very low. No one really wants to do anything. The guys are still producing goods but their hearts just aren’t in it.

“We have tried to ask Kingspan Group to reconsider and do a cost cutting exercise to reduce overheads rather than shut it down.

“We have even put together a management buyout plan but they have not listened. They have thrown everything back in our faces.”

Mr Scott said firms in the nearby area are starting to panic at the loss of trade. He said: “Even though its only 58 jobs going here, it will affect hundreds of other people.”

Paul Gregg co-owns of The Spray Shop in Lancing, which paints fabricated materials and relies on Interlink for half its annual turnover.

He said: “We have got 11 employees and whether we can hold on to all of them I do not know. It’s a massive customer to lose.

“Kingspan are a multibillion-pound company and Interlink are just small fry. It is a mad decision when they are still making such good profits.”

Colin Cooper, owner of IC Roofing, in Hailsham, buys barge boards and flashing from Interlink, often at short notice and to specific sizes.

He will now have to get the material sent down from Yorkshire, which will take longer and be more expensive – a cost he will be forced to pass on to customers.

A spokeswoman for Kingspan said the company will still be able to serve customers in the South despite operations moving to Yorkshire.

She said: “Kingspan have been effectively servicing the UK and Irish markets and are well placed to continue serving Interlink customers.”

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