Even as recently as about five years ago, General Products’ product mix was 60% automotive and 40% com- mercial vehicle. Shortly thereafter, in 2007, General
Products’ executives set their market focus for the future. Tey saw commercial vehicle as a growth area but wanted to diversify further. Te goal was to move into aerospace parts and industrial applications. A contract with an aerospace OEM
made the first part of the plan happen. “We have had good success
with [that first customer],” he said. “We went from zero to 12 active [aerospace] part numbers in three years. It’s been good for [our Angola] plant and helped us gain more technical acumen from a manufacturing standpoint.”
A Unique Relationship
Today, General Products machines up to a 213-lb. gray iron casting and aluminum castings up to 60 lbs. Ninety percent of the company’s work is aluminum and iron parts, but it
also machines steel, magnesium and titanium. It is working with several suppliers on new material develop- ments, as well. “We’re looking into thixomolded aluminum and magnesium,” Newby said. “We’ve identified potential weight and cost savings, so we’re work- ing with a foundry on it.” For the automotive and commercial
vehicle markets, General Products machines engine, driveline and chas- sis components. For aerospace and defense customers, it produces parts for propulsion engines, auxiliary power units and fluid management systems. Te company’s industrial business is still in its infancy. “We’d seen the [risks] of being an
automotive company,” Maroney said. “In the next two to four years, we expect commercial vehicle to remain strong. Class 7 and 8 trucks have beaten all expectations. It’s been getting stronger for three years, and it’s still growing.” When General Products is not
buying parts from metalcasters to match its customers’ growth, it is working with them in some capacity— partnering to fulfill orders or selling machine services outright. “Tere’s no pride of ownership for
General Products added 22 new machining centers last year and expects to add an equal number in the coming year.
36 | MODERN CASTING February 2012
the Tier 1 status, although we do end up in the same forums,” Newby said. According to Maroney, a good rule of thumb is the machine shop should take the lead when the machining operation adds the most value, and the metalcasting facility should have the lead when casting costs more than machining, because the job manager will mark up the operation the com- pany does not perform. Whatever the relationship with the metalcasting facility, General Products’ customers remain the same: OEMs in the four markets the com- pany serves. Sometimes, the OEM will have an existing relationship with a metalcasting facility and dictate that all parts be procured from that facility. Other times, General Products will have to rely on a casting facility with which it has an existing relationship or vet a new one. “Tere is huge variability in the success of metalcasters,” Newby said. “Some foundries do an excellent
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