Articles: Industry News

AFS Corporate Member Allied Mineral Products LLC (Allied) has purchased AFS Corporate Member Industrial Ceramic Products, Inc. (ICP). The acquisition will allow Allied to increase applications diversity, capacity, and expansion into precision, high-fired refractory shapes markets. 

AFS Corporate Member Clow Valve, a McWane Inc. company, held a ceremony August 22 to unveil its $80 million foundry expansion.
Oskaloosa Mayor Dave Krutzfeldt and representatives of the Greater Des Moines Partnership and Iowa Economic Development Authority were present to cut the ribbon on the 36,000-sq.-ft. addition. The project initially broke ground in 2023 with support from the state’s High Quality Jobs Program. The program assists qualifying businesses to offset some of the costs incurred to locate, expand or modernize an Iowa facility.

A special ribbon-cutting ceremony honoring Lori Mason, president and CEO of AFS Corporate Member Seneca Foundry, was held on Tuesday, August 19 at Seneca Foundry in Webster City, Iowa. 

The celebration marked Mason’s first full year of ownership at the helm of Seneca Foundry. With a strong commitment to preserving the company’s identity as a family-owned business, Mason has dedicated herself to sustaining the foundry’s long-standing presence in the Webster City area. 

The Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry (WAF) recently launched an artist-in-residence program, inspired by the Kohler Co. residency, with the goal of documenting the foundry’s craft and promoting metalcasting as an art form. 

The first resident, Milwaukee-based metal artist Chris Redmond, is working with WAF to learn the casting process, document the craft, and build the program for the future. 

The sand 3D printing division of AFS Corporate Member ExOne GmbH has been acquired by Anzu Partners, a technology investor.  
Under the new ownership structure, the company will be dedicated exclusively to sand 3D printing excellence, with a global footprint. Anzu Partners has expressed a strong commitment to ensuring continuity across operational areas. 

The company says that with the acquisition, ExOne’s customers and suppliers can expect consistent service and continuous collaboration, with existing relations, agreements, and service standards upheld. 

AFS Corporate member WGS Global Services has entered into an agreement with Vibrotech Engineering S.L., an international company based in Spain that designs and manufactures vibrating machinery. WGS Global Services is now the sales partner of Vibrotech Engineering in North America.

WGS, located in Flint, Michigan, with operations in Tell City, Indiana, Athens, Tennessee, and Grand Blanc, Michigan, provides casting finishing, inspection, and labor support to the metal casting industry, both in WGS facilities and its customer locations.

Astaras, Inc., a supplier of advanced tungsten heavy alloy materials, hosted the grand opening of its brand-new manufacturing facility in Clearwater, Florida, on August 6. The event marked the launch of the DENSALLOY U.S.-made Tungsten Heavy Alloys brand. The grand opening event was attended by several Florida state officials and industry leaders.  

In an era when U.S. manufacturers face historic workforce shortages and an urgent need to inspire young talent, AFS member Humtown (Columbiana, Ohio) says it has transformed its factory floor into a hands-on learning lab, where students see, touch, and experience the possibilities of modern manufacturing. Over the past three years, more than 1,000 students across Northeast Ohio and Western Pennsylvania have benefited from hands-on manufacturing experiences at the company––both through on-site, student-led tours and in-school career exploration programs.

AFS Corporate Member Epic Machine (Fenton, Michigan), a producer of CNC precision machining and custom tooling, announced its certification as a Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB) by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). The milestone positions Epic Machine to pursue new opportunities in both federal and private sectors that prioritize supplier diversity and the inclusion of women-owned enterprises.

DISA (Taastrup, Denmark) a technology of AFS Corporate Member The Norican Group, recently announced construction of a new test foundry in Denmark to support producers of aluminum, steel, brass, and bronze castings in adopting the highly-efficient green sand molding process.

The test foundry will run production trials for new and existing castings to prove the green sand process meets both casting specifications and cost expectations.