Cerplex Layoffs to Cut a Third of O.C. Staff of 125

Struggling computer services company Cerplex Group said Friday it plans to eliminate a third of the work force at the company’s headquarters here as part of a sweeping plan to cut costs.

The company will cut 42 of the 125 jobs at its Tustin offices, part of a plan to reduce its North American work force by more than 16%. Cerplex said it also plans to consolidate its operations and look for new headquarters in Orange County for its reduced corporate staff.

Overall, the company is planning to lop 125 jobs from its 750-employee payroll.

The company, which provides independent computer repair services and other management assistance, posted losses of nearly $67 million the last two years.

Cerplex said it will close its facility in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., moving those operations to its site in Lawrence, Mass. The company also said it intends to consolidate some of its operations at Tustin and Redmond, Wash. into other sites in Ontario, Northern California and Kentucky, as well as in Massachusetts.

The company said the moves should save more than $7 million a year and help put Cerplex in the black again.

The company’s stock was dropped from the Nasdaq national market in February and shifted to the over-the-counter bulletin board after Cerplex’s net assets fell below Nasdaq’s minimum requirements. The stock was trading Friday at 62 cents a share.

In April, Cerplex announced plans to sell one of its subsidiaries, Peripheral Computer Support Inc., generating about $13 million to help reduce its bank debts and shore up the bottom line.

Last June, the company closed two money-losing manufacturing and repair plants in Texas, laying off 130 employees.