Brick maker to close

The ailing housing market has claimed another casualty in the Triangle with the planned closure of a brick manufacturing plant in Moncure.

General Shale Brick, based in Tennessee, plans to close its two manufacturing facilities in the Chatham County town and furlough 117 people in September.

But in its letter to the N.C. Department of Commerce, the company described the plant closure as temporary.

"As soon as we get our inventory in line with demand, we will call back the workers and get them back into production," Bob Propes, the company's director of promotions and national accounts, said in a phone interview. "Hopefully this is a short-term event."

Propes said the workers could be recalled as soon as six months from now.

"People are still building, just not at the same pace," he said.

The housing market has shown glimmers of recovery, but economists said this week that U.S. home prices are likely to continue falling.

General Shale is dependent on real-estate development and has ridden out the recession by furloughing its work force in response to weakening demand for its products.

The brick company recently furloughed one group of workers from November to January and another group from April until January, Propes said. The company has not cut the size of its work force in Moncure, about 30 miles southwest of Raleigh.

General Shale makes a range of brick styles and colors for residential and commercial use. It also makes masonry products for remodeling and landscaping.

The company will keep 32 people employed at the Moncure site in shipping and distribution. The company also has distribution sites in Raleigh, Sanford, Greensboro, Wilmington and Charlotte.

Chatham County had an unemployment rate of 6.9 percent in June, lower than the state average of 10 percent.

"We're glad that it's temporary rather than permanent, that's for sure," said Dianne Reid, president of the Chatham County Economic Development Corp.