The hits just keep coming for Caterpillar …
The company reported Wednesday that profits are down more than expected, and they cut their forecasts again. From Reuters:
In an interview with CNBC, Caterpillar Chairman and Chief Executive Doug Oberhelman said he was confident mining customers would begin ordering again but acknowledged he did not have any idea when that would happen.
“Long term, the mining customers I’ve talked to lately are very bullish – as am I, and I have to be based on what they tell me,” Oberhelman said.
“But I don’t know if long term is next year, five years or 10 years. But it will come back. We’ve seen it every single time.”
Meanwhile, local impacts of the recent layoffs continue. WUWM has a good piece on those impacts, with interviews with area business owners and impacted workers. From it:
Across the street, sits a bar named Powers on 10th. Owner Joe Braun says, if not for the layoffs, the place would be packed this evening.
“A lot of those employees were people who like to come here at night after second shift or there’s a group of guys who would come after first shift. My group of guys who would stop here from 3:00 to 6:00 at night went from 10 or 12 people down to about four people, so yeah, it affects a lot,” Braun says.
Braun says business dropped so profoundly this past summer that by August he had laid-off several employees. He says he can’t afford to hire anyone right now, so he tends bar.
South Milwaukee Blog 
I felt very concerned the moment I heard Caterpillar was buying the South Milwaukee location. Caterpillar seems to have upper management issues. I husband worked for the Chase location back in 1985. After 21 years he was laid off and they moved all their operations out of WI. Can’t help but think…here we go again!!!!!
I am afraid that the plant will be shutdown within 2 to 3 years ast CAT has done at other locations they acquired.
I think you are on the money Rick!
if they close the plant they have to tear the buildings down and clean up the land and return the land back to south milwaukee in the shape it was when bucyrus bought the land in the 1890s they signed onto the agreement when they bought be
would cost them several billion dollars to do that ask current and former workers what the new building north of rawson is sitting on it will make the clean up at the walmart site look tame
Tony, If and when they close the plant, they are not going to tear the buildings down. They will be left vacant as other plants they have closed.