There is more bad news on the jobs front in west Wiltshire with the news that Avon Rubber in Semington near Melksham is to axe 72 jobs.

Products made of the dairy industry at the firm on Hampton Park West will now be made in the Czech Republic to save money, resulting in the loss of UK jobs.

Avon said the decision would 'improve the performance of our UK based operations in these difficult economic times'.

Consultation with the affected employees has begun with the transfer of operations scheduled to be completed by the end of this year.

Avon made the announcement on the London Stock Exchange at 9.30am this morning.

A worker, who did not want to be named, said this morning: "It's totally disheartening. Some of the guys in there are going to struggle to find anything else.

"Some of them have been there 25 years. It's a pretty close knit team and it's not a massive factory.

"Senior management from the Czech Republic came here about five or six weeks ago along with some operators, which never normally happens. So we knew it was on the cards then.

Avon also said the Ministry of Defence had placed a further order for the in-service respirator, the S10. The contract is worth £4.49 million but has the potential to exceed £10 million over three years. The masks will continue to be made at Hampton Park West.

Peter Slabbert, Avon's chief executive officer, said: "Whilst we greatly regret the probable loss of jobs resulting from the transfer of dairy manufacture, the move will secure the viability of our remaining operations in Wiltshire.

"This is where much of our design, materials and manufacturing expertise remain – skills and resources essential for our growing respiratory protection business.

"The latest MoD contract, together with Avon’s supply of our new M50 gas mask to the US DoD, reinforces our position as the world leader in military respirators."