By Cliff Peale
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Employees awaiting an announcement this morning about possible restructuring at Procter & Gamble Co.'s Ivorydale plant complex already have been through plenty of changes.

What once was a hub of P&G's production network is now down to only a couple of mainline plants- one making bar soaps and one making surfactant for liquid laundry detergents.

ABOUT IVORYDALE

Construction started in 1885, and production started the next year. Among the first products were soap, candles and glycerine. Original production capacity was more than 400,000 bars a day - more than double P&G's original Central Avenue plant. The plant has added research and development functions - including the Ivorydale Technical Center and the Fabric and Home Care Innovation Center, which is scheduled to open next year. Starting in 1996, P&G spent more than $200 million to build a plant to make the fat substitute Olean. It since has cut production of that product and sold the plant. In 1998, P&G said it would close the Tide detergent plant at Ivorydale.

It's the bar soap plant - which makes products including Zest and Ivory - that is the subject of today's employee meeting. P&G has been studying the supply chain in that business unit and will "update" employees on its progress this morning, officials said.

Opened in 1886, Ivorydale is P&G's oldest plant, originally making soap, candles and glycerine. While the company operates many bigger facilities around the world, Ivorydale's long history, central location in St. Bernard and high-impact employment have made it a keystone for P&G's Tristate presence.

Mergers have taken several plants out of the mix in Ivorydale. J.M. Smucker Co. now owns the Crisco plant there, while Twin Rivers Technologies operates the plant that makes the fat substitute Olean.

And P&G has closed others, including a powdered detergent plant in 1998.

That leaves only the bar-soap plant and another one that makes surfactant in liquid laundry detergents. Overall, more than 700 employees work at the plants, a spokesman said.

The Ivorydale complex also holds a research-and-development technical center, which probably will not be affected by today's announcement. And a new Fabric and Home Care Innovation Center is scheduled to open next year.

The P&G spokesman confirmed the employee announcement and said he did not know of any shutdowns at the plant today.

Within P&G, today's announcement is another step in a restructuring of plants throughout North America.

For example, P&G is closing a plant in Minnesota that makes Pur water-purification equipment. It also is adding or reducing production at plants in Augusta, Ga., Alexandria, La., Green Bay, Wis., and Brockville, Ontario.

Tom Kircher, the lawyer for the union that represents employees at Ivorydale, said he was aware of the meeting but that he didn't know details.

E-mail cpeale@enquirer.com