International Paper to Close Part of Fort Smith Operation

International Paper Co. is closing four plants, including part of its operations in Fort Smith, in the next two months, according to published reports on Tuesday.

The Memphis Business Journal said the company will close plants in Santa Paula, Calif., Chicago and Solon, Ohio, in addition to the sheet plant at 1307 S. 6th St. in Fort Smith.

In all, 215 jobs will be eliminated, the newspaper said.

In Fort Smith, the closure will mean the loss of six full-time jobs, according to KFSM-TV, Channel 5, which reported that other components of the Fort Smith operation — a site on Planters Road that employs 150 workers and another on Newlon Road that employs 100 — won’t be affected.

The closings come after International Paper completed a $4.4 billion acquisition of Temple-Inland, a deal that raised the Memphis company’s share of the cardboard market. But according to the Memphis Commercial Appeal, the merger also left IP with too much factory space in places where both companies have plants.