INDUSTRY NEWS
Alfe Retools Plant Aluminum specialist Alfe Heat Treat-
ing, Fort Wayne, Ind., has completed a $20-million dollar capital equipment investment to retool its Defiance, Ohio, plant to support new, high-efficiency automotive engines. Te company oper- ates plants throughout the Midwest and Southeast serving aerospace, automotive, military and commercial customers with ferrous and nonferrous facilities. Te fully automated plant can process
one engine every 49 seconds, allowing Alfe to meet 100% of the manufacturers’ needs for the specified product lines. “Our new capacity and tooling will help our customers produce better, more efficient engines,” said John Holifield, vice president of heat treating operations. Alfe Defiance houses multiple sup- pliers in a single location, using automa- tion to transport parts from one to the other. Te shared location provides heat treating, shot blasting, X-ray, machining, leak testing, impregnation and additional secondary services.
Calco Awarded Sustainability Grant Te C.A. Lawton Co. (Calco), De
Pere, Wis., has been awarded a grant to increase its financial and environmental performance through the Wisconsin Profitable Sustainability Initiative (PSI), which is funded by state grants from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. PSI also is supported by a federal grant awarded by the Department of Energy through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Calco will use the grant to invest in efficient air compressors and new light- ing, with an expected return on invest- ment of less than 2 years. In addition to reduced energy consumption, the the new compressors require less mainte- nance and offer an increased tool life. When planning for the future, Calco utilizes an environmental management system that measures the potential ecological impact of its ac- tions. It is part of an ongoing effort to reduce waste, reuse or recycle materials, and select materials from suppliers
that are environmentally aware in their business activities and minimize energy consumption. With an emphasis on return on
investment, the PSI program includes a comprehensive review of the entire product life cycle. Te approach yields improved financial and environmental performance by providing innovative solutions through a process of quickly identifying and assessing opportunities in areas of material use and production processes, which includes product qual- ity and design.
ISO 9001:2008 certified Calco’s
integrated business includes patternmak- ing, casting and machining capabilities. Te C.A. Lawton Co. provides large iron castings and machining for domestic manufacturers in the HVAC, municipal pump and valve, oil & gas, mining, and power generation industries, and its customer base includes companies such as General Electric, IR/Trane, Metso and Siemens.
12 | MODERN CASTING October 2012
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