Delphi, which closed or sold at least six Dayton-area plants in recent years, wants to be publicly traded again.

The company filed with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Wednesday seeking to be traded under the ticker symbol “DLPH.”

Delphi Automotive PLC is a much different company from the Delphi Corp. that entered bankruptcy protection in 2005.

In 1999, when the then-General Motors Corp. spun off Delphi (its parts-making arm) to independence, Delphi had about 15,000 Dayton-area employees. Today, there are about 200 employees in Vandalia.

The company closed several plants in Moraine and Dayton and leased part of a Kettering plant to Tenneco. Part of an operation off Northwoods Boulevard in Vandalia was shut down, although an thermal parts operation still runs there, one of about four remaining U.S. plants.

Delphi said Thursday it has reduced product lines from 119 to 33, exited 11 businesses, closed more than 70 sites and decreased global headcount, including temporary employees, by approximately 27 percent said 2005. Today, 91 percent of his hourly workforce is in “low cost countries,” it said.

Many Delphi retirees, particularly salaried retirees, feel they have been abandoned by the company after decades of service. In early 2009, Delphi cut off retirees from expected health and life insurance benefits. Later that year the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. took over Delphi’s pension obligations, which has reduced pension payments.

While GM has said it will make whole hourly retirees affected by the shift of pensions to the PBGC, salaried retirees have received no such support.

In March, the PBGC sold its stake in Delphi for $594 million. The agency said it did not know how the sale would affect benefits.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2390 or tgnau@DaytonDailyNews.com.