Rogers adds plant, closes another

ROGERS, Conn. (Feb. 11)— Rogers Corp. has completed the first of two major moves when it shifted its Bisco Materials operation to a new plant it purchased in Carol Stream, Ill., from a site it's closing in Elk Grove, Ill. The company has begun installing new equipment at the factory to accommodate its elastomer high-performance polyolefin foam unit, purchased from Cellect L.L.C. in early 2002. Once the machinery is in place, the polyolefin business will be combined with Bisco Materials, which is part of Rogers´ High Performance Foams group and manufactures silicone foams and solids, a Rogers spokeswoman said. "There's four product lines involved, and the first we have to build from scratch," she said. "Basically, we're turning a batch process into a continuous process for all four lines." The project will take about a year to complete, she said, and the four lines likely will be up and running in early 2004.