The C.R. Bard plant in Queensbury is laying off 54 full-time employees to bring its staffing level in line with demand for its products. Employees were notified of the layoffs Monday, and the actual reductions will take place over the next few weeks. The layoffs announced Monday are on top of 55 layoffs at the medical device manufacturing plant in July, said Scott Lowry, C.R. Bard vice president and treasurer. “It’s a challenging health-care environment for a lot of reasons,” Lowry said. “We’re right-sizing to meet those changes. We’re not seeing the volumes we had in the past, the volumes we were expecting.” No additional layoffs are planned for the plant currently, and Lowry said there weren’t layoffs at any of the company’s other facilities on Monday, but that’s something company officials continue to look at. Despite the recent downsizing, Lowry emphasized the company remains committed to the Queensbury plant, and there weren’t any long-term implications about the future of the plant. “It’s a key plant for us, but a lot depends on needs,” Lowry said. “We view it as a key facility for Bard. This was mostly a tactical reaction.” The laid-off employees were offered severance packages, Lowry said. The company last month reported a third-quarter earnings drop. The company’s net income was $129.3 million, a 1 percent decrease from the third quarter in 2011. The company’s business has been shifting to overseas markets and its overseas sales grew by 3 percent in the third quarter, while U.S. sales were down 1 percent from last year’s third quarter.
