A spokesman for Kodak said that 2,000-3,000 jobs would go at its headquarters in Rochester, New York State, but was unable to say whether Kodaks manufacturing plant in Harrow, which makes graphic arts film products, would be affected.
Kodaks sales of graphic arts products to Kodak Polychrome Graphics (KPG), which it jointly owns with Sun Chemical, have decreased 16% compared to the second quarter of 2002. However, KPG is contributing positively and has posted operating profits in the black for 12 consecutive quarters.
KPG marketing manager Pat Holloway said that although the firm bought less Kodak graphic arts film than a year ago, its parents still benefited from increased sales of CTP plates.
The bottom line is that KPG is very profitable. While its true that we dont buy as much film, thats not lost business because were selling more plates. The profit from the plates business goes back to Kodak, said Holloway.
KPG has CTP plate manufacturing plants in Leeds, Germany, France and Bulgaria.
Kodaks second-quarter sales rose 0.5% compared to the same quarter last year to 2.06bn ($3.35bn), thanks in part to favourable exchange rates of around 6%, which offset negative impacts of price and volume. The firms net earnings fell 60% to 68.9m.
Story by John Davies
