Intersil Closing Plant, Firing Hundreds in Ohio

Intersil Corp., an Irvine maker of chips that manage power consumption in computers, said it will close its integrated circuit manufacturing plant in Findlay, Ohio, and fire most of the factory’s 430 employees because of weakening economic conditions.

The company will stop making automotive and industrial circuits to focus on communication circuits, said Daniel J. Heneghan, chief financial officer. Earlier this month, the company said it expects first-quarter profit and revenue to miss expectations because its customers are buying less.

Intersil said it would try to find a buyer for the facility, which Intersil expects will take 12 to 18 months to close.

Heneghan said most of the employees will be fired and that the company will probably take a charge related to severance pay.

Intersil stock rose $1.22 to close at $20.09 a share on Nasdaq.