Sensata cutting 160 jobs in Northern Ireland

TPMS sensor manufacturer Sensata Technologies is cutting 160 jobs in the town of Antrim, Northern Ireland. The news follows Sensata’s decision to close its Carrickfergus, County Antrim operation in January 2020. And this was part of a downward trend that saw the company cut 125 jobs in Carrickfergus in 2018.

In an official statement Sensata said the job losses were due to a “significant drop” in demand in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Vice president Eric Sorret said: “This long-term reduction in market demand has already directly affected our Northern Ireland manufactured product lines and we regret to announce that we will be making a series of reductions to the workforce at our Antrim site during 2020 and early 2021.”

However, the company says it “remains committed” to working in Northern Ireland: “Despite these difficult operational decisions Sensata remains committed to Northern Ireland and will continue to invest in the development of smart and connected products to support future growth,” Sorret added.

The Sensata operations were formerly known as Schrader International before the TPMS sensor business was bought by Sensata. The Schrader Group was sold to Sensata technologies for US$1 billion in August 2014. Four months earlier the company created 241 jobs when it invested £56 million in its Northern Ireland TPMS facilities.