A specialist Dundee electronics firm is set to cut around 10% of its workforce as it looks to reverse a downwards profits trend.
Staff at Claverhouse Industrial Estate-based Stoneridge Electronics were told this week that 11 roles were being cut from its 100-strong workforce.
The firm, which specialises in aftermarket care of tachograph instruments supplied by its wider parent group, confirmed it had entered into a formal four-week consultation with staff over the redundancies.
Amanda Robertson, Dundee-based vice-president, aftermarket for Stoneridge Electronics, said the decision to cut jobs was regrettable but was necessary in order to maintain the site’s decade-long record of profitability.
The unit is part of Stoneridge Electronics Limited, which has other operational elements across Europe and which produced sales in excess of £18 million in 2013.
Ms Robertson said the Dundee redundancy situation was part of a wider strategy designed to ensure the base remained earnings enhancing for the group in the long-term.
“For a start, I would like to make it absolutely clear that we are, and continue to be, a profitable organisation,” Ms Robertson told The Courier.
“We are not doing this because we are loss-making.
“But over the last couple of years we have seen a decline in profit and management has a responsibility to take steps to make sure we change that trend.
“We have taken a number of strategic steps to do that and one of them is to reduce our cost base.
“Unfortunately, part of that is that we need to lose some roles.
“As of this week, we have started a consultation with employees.
“There are 11 people within the Dundee organisation who will unfortunately not be with us going forward.
“We will try to do this as quickly and respectfully as we possibly can.
“I am not happy about making this step but we have to protect the wider business.”
Stoneridge offers a wide range of digital tachograph solutions developed for trucks, buses, off-road and tier-two suppliers in the global vehicles market.
The firm counts major names such as Scania, MAN, Daimler, DAF and Volvo amongst its client base.