Goleta-based Channel Technologies Group has filed for bankruptcy, and has given the state notice that it will layoff all its employees in the next several months.
The manufacturing company, which focuses on piezoelectric ceramics, filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Oct. 14 with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California, in Santa Barbara.
The company also gave notice to the state Employment Development Department on Oct. 17 that it expects to lay off all of its 215 employees.
The company has lost $11.6 million this year, and is seeking a buyer for its operations, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The company’s letter said it anticipates the layoffs to occur from Dec. 20 through Jan. 30.
Channel Technologies officials declined to comment for this story, and the company is not required to submit the reason for its closure to the EDD.
Founded locally in 1959 as Channel Industries, the company manufactures piezoelectric ceramics; transducers, which convert one form of energy to another; acoustic systems for sonar equipment; and infrared and visible light spectrum test and calibration equipment.
Piezoelectricity refers to electricity resulting from pressure in some solid materials.
According to the company, its products are mainly used in the commercial, energy and defense markets.
Channel Technologies Group’s campus at 879 Ward Drive is 150,000 square feet, and the company has research partnerships with the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory and a number of universities, including UC Santa Barbara.
EDD spokesman Alberto Larios told Noozhawk that with the filing of the WARN Report notice, EDD staff will begin working with local organizations to offer displaced employees services such as information on unemployment insurance, training, resume building and job searches through CalJOBS.
The many large tech companies in the city are always looking for specialized employees like those at Channel Technologies Groups, said Kristen Miller, president of the Goleta Valley Chamber of Commerce.
“The Goleta Chamber is concerned about the news of the closure of Channel Technologies Group, and we are ready to help by working with the Workforce Development Board to connect laid-off workers with existing employers in Goleta,” Miller told Noozhawk.
“Hiring local talent is often a hurdle in high-tech and manufacturing businesses here, so there may be an opportunity to keep those local workers and move them into similar jobs.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Sam Goldman can be reached at sgoldman@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.