Copyright Santa Rosa Press Democrat
A big job cut this summer at a Napa maker of equipment used for production of computer chips, solar panels, LED lights and flat-panel displays apparently wasn’t enough to stave off the closure of the 38-year-old company’s factory that has been in Napa Valley for most of that time. Advanced Pressure Technology, also known as AP Tech, said it would permanently lay off the remaining 237 employees at 687 Technology Way near Napa County Airport and close the facility on Dec. 1, according to a notice to state and local authorities. In May, a company official attributed the need to trim staff to international trade disputes that had caused a “significant slowdown in demand from key customers,” most pointedly a Chinese company that was cancelling orders of production equipment and finding other suppliers. The latest notice, submitted Oct. 2, said the market situation hadn’t improved. “Our proactive efforts to preserve jobs have not been enough,” wrote Christine Castille, human resources manager for SMC Corporation of America. “We have tried eliminating overtime, reallocating resources to try and stabilize operations, and an earlier layoff in July 2025, but despite these steps, workload has continued to decline and show no sign of recovery.” AP Tech, part of Japan-based SMC Corporation, had said it planned to lay off 89 workers in July. Even before that, the Napa firm had already trimmed operations to 334 employees over the previous 12 months as part of SMC’s global effort to align production with demand, a spokesperson told the Journal in May. AP Tech was started in San Rafael in June 1987 by Rene Zakhour after a 23-year career in engineering design for components used in gas welding. The pressure regulators and valves for movement of gasses for which the company would become known first came to market in 1988. The company expanded in September 1992 in a move to a 36,000-square-foot factory with a 2,000-square-foot class 100 clean room (third-cleanest on the federal standard) in Napa. AP Tech expanded again in November 1997 to its current 77,000-square-foot location with 10,000-square-foot class 100 clean room at 687 Technology Way. Founded in 1959, SMC (originally Sintered Metal Corporation) purchased AP Tech in May 2007. Zakhour stepped away from day-to-day management of Napa operations several years ago, Morrison said. Net sales last fiscal year, ended March 31, were 792.1 billion yen ($5.31 billion), and the company employed over 23,000 in multiple countries. Jeff Quackenbush joined North Bay Business Journal in May 1999. He covers primarily wine, construction and real estate. Reach him at jeff@nbbj.news or 707-521-4256.
