More than 230 jobs are to go in east Cork following the announcement of the closure of a compact disk (CD) and DVD factory in Youghal.

Staff at Technicolor Home Entertainment Services were told that manufacturing equipment and operations at the Youghal plant would be transferred to existing company facilities in Cwmbran, Wales, and Piaseczno, Poland.

A Technicolor spokeswoman said the closure decision followed an exhaustive review of the European DVD market.

"The review substantiated the need to consolidate the manufacturing supply chain to effectively compete," said the spokeswoman. "This decision is not a reflection of the hard work and contribution of Technicolor's employees in Cork. Technicolor will provide a comprehensive package of support to assist affected employees in securing employment."

Consultations will begin shortly with employee representatives and a phased run-down of operations next month. Some 52 of the 234 workers at the plant were employed on a temporary basis.

Enterprise, Trade & Employment Minister, Ms Harney, said the news had come as a complete surprise, describing it as a devastating blow, not just for the workforce but for the entire community.

Technicolor took over the 120,000 sq ft facility in June 2001 after buying it from US-based Eastman Kodak company.

Technicolor is the world's leading supplier of motion picture prints, DVDs, CDs and video cassettes. Technicolor is a subsidiary of Thomson Multimedia, which employs 73,000 people in 30 countries.

When Thomson Multimedia bought the factory last year, its spokesman, Mr Marc Meyer, said the company "wasn't in the business of buying factories to close them".

However, the group would not be drawn yesterday on its reasons for shutting the Cork facility.

Shortly before Christmas, 160 people lost their jobs when Artesyn Technologies in Youghal closed.

East Cork has been badly hit by high-profile closures in recent years, with 200 redundancies at the Irish Fertilizer Industries plant in Marino Point and the closure of Youghal Carpets in Carrigtwohill, with 300 people joining the dole queue just over 12 months ago.

Local Fine Gael TD, Mr David Stanton, said the announcement of the closure was the latest in a series of unfortunate blows to the town.

" We are left without any major plants in Youghal."

Cork East Labour TD, Mr Joe Sherlock, warned the region is in danger of becoming an economic disaster.