Waupaca Foundry opens machining facility

Waupaca Foundry, a Hitachi Metals company, announced the opening of the company’s first machining facility in Waupaca.

The company opened the Waupaca Foundry Machine Center in the old Buyers Guide building at 600 Industrial Drive in Waupaca. It operates another machining center in Effingham, Ill.

The center will turn finished castings into finished parts. The machining process adjusts cast parts to meet the tight tolerances from customers, in some cases adjusting a part to less than one-thousandth of an inch — smaller than a human hair. The facility will only machine parts from Waupaca Foundry and will initially focus on machining brake rotors for the commercial truck market.

At full operation, the foundry will employ 15, which will include a mix of current employees and new hires. The 50,000-square-foot facility features state-of-the-art technology and automation.

“This is just another thing that helps us solidify our position in the market and helps us grow with existing and new customers,” said John Wiebrock, executive vice president of sales, marketing and supply chain management for the foundry.

Here’s a video from the new facility.