ILX lays off five workers

Although the fiber-optics market seems to have stabilized, ILX Lightwave http://www.ilxlightwave.com laid off another five employees at its Bozeman facility Wednesday.

By KAYLEY MENDENHALL, Chronicle Staff Writer

"We were hoping mid-year, this year things would pick up. They have picked up a little, but not as much as we had hoped for," Larry Johnson, CEO of the company, said in a phone interview Thursday. "We wanted to take a conservative view for next year. We didn’t want to overextend ourselves."

With the latest round of layoffs — the company’s sixth since June 2001 — ILX has 45 employees left in Bozeman and one in Boulder, Colo. Johnson said the five employees worked in all departments, including administration, marketing and sales and product development.

"In 2001 and 2002 we were in free fall," Johnson said. "Over the last six months our business has stabilized. Things stabilized at a disappointingly low level, but at least there is some comfort in that stabilization."

ILX builds production equipment for companies that make fiber-optic components. At its height, the company employed more than 200 people, but now its 40,000 square-foot company headquarters on the frontage road east of Bozeman is largely empty. Attempts to lease the excess space have so far been unsuccessful.

Johnson said ILX remains committed to being a successful Bozeman business and is looking forward to a turn around in the fiber-optics market.

"After all these years we’ve kept some great employees. It was really tough to say goodbye," Johnson said. "I’m done with this downward trend. I’m ready to have more fun. It looks like it is going to come."

Kayley Mendenhall is at [email protected]

http://bozemandailychronicle.com/articles/2003/11/21/news/ilxbzbigs.txt