Mark O’Kane, the general manager of the Orange Electrolux factory, invited past management figures to take a preview tour that, starting next Wednesday, everyone is welcomed to join.

“Tens of thousands of people have worked here in Orange and our products have been used by millions of people both here and overseas,” Mr O’Kane said. 

One of those workers started out as a welder in 1954 and retired in 1994 as the general manager.

When Jock Ferguson began working at the plant it was a factory in the true sense of the word.

All production was in house, albeit in a much smaller workspace.

“Some things here are the same as what we did when I left, but a lot of things are far better and a lot different,” Mr Ferguson said.

Mr Ferguson cited the rationalisation of models as being one of the most important changes that he noticed, that and a lot more mechanisation.

“They’ve done everything that we wanted to do and they’re doing it all much better than we did,” Mr Ferguson said.

For the president of the Plant Retirees Association, Robert Honeysett, he was disappointed that the plant was closing considering his family’s long ties with the site.

“My father worked here when it was a small arms factory,” he said

“And I began working here in 1951.”

For former human resources manager Graham Colley who finished in 2007, the site hasn’t really changed that much, but he took the opportunity during the tour to meet with some of his former workmates.

“When I was here we had about 800 people working, but that’s now down to under 500,” he said

“But there’s still a few here that I know. It’s sad to see that all this will be closing down.”