Invista is discontinuing a key product at its Chattanooga manufacturing plant and cutting an as-yet undetermined number of its 300-member workforce, the company said today.

The company, which bought most of DuPont's Access Road plant in 2004, is stopping nylon 6,6 polymer production in Chattanooga, it said in a statement.

"We know this news is difficult, and the decision was very carefully considered," said Kevin Robles, senior vice-president of Invista operations. "Invista is making this announcement now to ensure that employees, contractors, site tenant companies and customers have as much time as possible to plan for the future."

Because the move is a multi-phase restructuring process, it is premature to know how many employees will be impacted and when, officials said in a statement.

Site leadership anticipates the ongoing need for a consistent workforce into 2017 to assist with the transfer of production and assets in addition to completing the necessary steps to safely secure the nylon 6,6 polymer assets not needed in the future, the company said.

Any employee affected by this announcement will receive 60-day notice prior to leaving Invista and may be eligible for severance benefits, the company said.

"The employees at Chattanooga have worked diligently to provide reliable products that support our global business," Robles said "Unfortunately, the infrastructure at Chattanooga is less competitive than other Invista North American regional polymer assets. Therefore, to better position the company for long-term success, we are consolidating our North American polymer assets to most efficiently meet our customers' preference for regional supply."

DuPont sold most of its 500-acre Hixson nylon production plant to Koch Industries' Invista division in 2004 and late last year announced it was closing its operations at the plant.

About 40 workers, including 26 employees and 14 contractors, lost their jobs at the end of last year.

See more in Friday's Times Free Press.