AFS Corporate Member Mueller Water Products (Atlanta) broke ground on its new, state-of-the-art foundry in Decatur, Illinois.

“We started Mueller here in Decatur in 1857 and have been lucky enough to be in business here for over 160 years, and we are very excited about this groundbreaking and putting this brand new foundry here in Decatur,” said senior vice president of sales and marketing Chad Mize, according to the Herald & Review. “We believe this investment will allow our organization, as well as the city, to thrive for the next 160 years. This foundry is going to be the most modern, state of the art, most capable, efficient brass foundry in the world.”

The foundry will be located at 2700 N. Jasper Street and manufacture finished brass goods for water and gas transmission. Up to 250 employees will work at the foundry when it is completed.

The first parts are expected to be poured in about 18 months.

“This foundry is being built for us to grow. So yes, there's new technology and we are going to employ that technology, but we also have a commitment from the state and the city to support the training of our employees on this new equipment,” Mize said, according to the report. “So our employees are still going to be here. They are still going to be making brass parts for us, they are going to be doing it a little bit differently, so it is going to give us the ability to bring more into our foundry than we've had in the past.”

Currently, Mueller has a metalcasting facility on Garfield Avenue in Decatur, as well as another manufacturing facility on Eldorado Street. Eventually all casting production will be moved to the new foundry once construction is complete.

Mueller Water Products’ portfolio includes engineered valves, fire hydrants, pipe connection and repair products, metering products, leak detection, and pipe condition assessment.

Last year, Mueller also announced a three-year expansion project at its foundry in Chattanooga, Tennessee.