Escalade Sports plans to close its last manufacturing operation in Evansville, IN, the company’s headquarters, effective September 5. Speaking to the Courier Press, Gary Allan, Escalade’s human resources director, said table tennis production will be consolidated into Escalade Sports Mexico operations in Reynosa and Rosarito, Mexico.

A total of 30 employees will lose their jobs as a result of the move.

Evansville will continue to serve as the distribution center and headquarters for Escalade Sports and its parent company, Escalade Inc., which also manufactures office equipment.

In February 2008, Escalade Sports announced it would cease manufacturing archery equipment for children, resulting in approximately 25 employees losing their jobs at the companys factory in Evansville. Escalade Sports also said it will cease making archery and playground equipment at that building.  Escalade’s factory in Gainesville, FL, will continue to make archery equipment for adults.

In April, Escalade said it would stop selling table-tennis and billiards tables to Sears Holdings Corp. because the retailer was not buying as many as it was in the past.

Escalade Sports is considered the largest marketer of table tennis in North America with its STIGA and Ping Pong brands. The elimination of the table tennis production in Evansville was a continuation of Escalade Sports initiative to lower operating costs and reduce excess manufacturing capacity, Allan told the Indiana newspaper.

“We had been looking at the manufacturing since we first announced the initiative in April,” he said.