Remington Outdoor Company is closing Montana Rifleman in Kalispell in order to move production to Alabama, a company spokesperson confirmed Thursday.
According to Teddy Novin, the company’s director of public affairs, the closure is part of a consolidation at Remington.
“Earlier today we announced the consolidation of multiple company plants into our Huntsville, AL facility,” Novin wrote in a statement to the Beacon. “This was a strategic business decision to concentrate our resources into fewer locations and improve manufacturing efficiency and quality. We are working hard to retain as many people from the affected facilities as possible.”
Montana Rifleman, a gun barrel manufacturer founded in 1990, produced 143,000 rifle barrels and pistol barrels in 2011. In 2012, production exceeded 312,000 barrels with a workforce of 160 to 170 people. Remington purchased Montana Rifleman in March 2013.
Remington, headquartered in Madison, North Carolina, has facilities in 19 states. Its largest plant is in Ilion, New York, where the company has had a presence since 1816.