Waupaca Foundry
Waupaca Foundry is the largest US iron foundry, producing gray, ductile, ADI, and CGI castings for automotive, commercial vehicle, off-highway, rail, oil & gas, and industrial OEMs across five US plants as a Hitachi Metals subsidiary.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1948
- HeadquartersWaupaca, United States
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Waupaca Foundry does
Waupaca Foundry, Inc. is the largest iron foundry in the United States and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hitachi Metals America, producing gray iron, ductile iron, austempered ductile iron (ADI), compacted graphite iron, and its proprietary high-strength HNM Series ductile iron for industrial customers. The company operates five manufacturing plants across Wisconsin (Waupaca and Marinette), Indiana (Tell City), Tennessee (Etowah), and Pennsylvania (Lawrenceville), plus a dedicated machining center, melting more than 9,500 tons of iron per day through green-sand vertical molding and, since 2023, horizontal molding processes enabled by a Sinto America line and an ExOne S-Max Pro 3D sand printer installed in 2022.
The company serves automotive OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers, commercial vehicle manufacturers, off-highway equipment makers (agricultural, construction, outdoor power), rail, oil & gas, fitness equipment, and industrial/municipal buyers. Product offerings span raw castings through fully machined, heat-treated, painted, and lightly assembled components, with engineering services in value analysis/value engineering, lightweighting design, casting conversions from steel weldments or aluminum, and rapid prototyping via 3D-printed sand cores. Customer relationships are deep and long-tenured, evidenced by multiple top-tier supplier awards from GM (SQEA 2023), Ford (Q1), Honda (Ridgeline steering knuckles), Toyota (first Tier 2 Professional Excellence Award), and John Deere (Partner-level status).
Waupaca runs an enterprise field-sales go-to-market model with no intermediaries, engaging customer engineering and procurement directly. In October 2025 it restructured its sales organization into Off-Highway and Consumer, Industrial & Government segments with new leadership. Pricing is quote-based per part, determined by material grade, complexity, volume, and finishing requirements, with revenue tied to OEM program awards and long-term supply contracts. The 2016 merger with Hitachi Metals Automotive Components USA brought Waupaca into the Hitachi Metals Group, providing global resources and parent-level R&D support, particularly for the HNM alloy family.
Waupaca Foundry firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Waupaca Foundry
- Legal name
- Waupaca Foundry, Inc.
- Website
- https://waupacafoundry.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1948
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- Waupaca Foundry is the largest US iron foundry, producing gray, ductile, ADI, and CGI castings for automotive, commercial vehicle, off-highway, rail, oil & gas, and industrial OEMs across five US plants as a Hitachi Metals subsidiary.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Waupaca Foundry is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Waupaca
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices5 records
Markets served
Waupaca Foundry business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Iron Casting Sales: Production and sale of gray iron, ductile iron, high-strength ductile iron, austempered ductile iron (ADI), and compacted graphite iron castings. Products range from raw castings to fully machined, painted, and assembled components. Pricing is quote-based per part, with volume and complexity determining unit economics.
- Value-Added Machining and Assembly: End-to-end manufacturing capabilities including casting, machining, heat treating, painting, and light assembly services, allowing delivery of finished components ready for OEM assembly lines
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels7 records
Waupaca Foundry product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Waupaca Foundry manufactures gray iron, ductile iron, high-strength ductile iron (HNM Series), austempered ductile iron (ADI), and compacted graphite iron castings using green sand vertical molding and horizontal molding processes. The company delivers end-to-end capabilities from raw castings to machined, heat-treated, painted, and assembled components ready for OEM assembly lines, serving automotive OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, off-highway, commercial vehicle, rail, oil & gas, fitness, and industrial customers.
Product overview
Waupaca Foundry is a leading iron casting manufacturer producing gray iron, ductile iron, high-strength ductile iron (HNM™), austempered ductile iron (ADI), and compacted graphite iron castings. The company operates six manufacturing plants across the United States and offers comprehensive value-added services including machining, heat treatment, painting, and light assembly. Waupaca serves diverse market segments—automotive, commercial vehicle, off-highway, rail, oil & gas, municipal, fitness equipment, and industrial—providing both standard castings and custom-engineered solutions. The product portfolio centers on core iron casting manufacturing complemented by additive manufacturing services (3D printed sand cores via ExOne S-Max Pro), design optimization consulting (VA/VE, lightweighting), and rapid prototyping capabilities. The company, a Hitachi Metals Group company, emphasizes collaborative engineering partnerships with OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers to deliver casting conversions, supply chain solutions, and mass reduction initiatives.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- HNM™ Series: High-strength ductile iron castings brand offering lightweighting solutions for automotive and commercial vehicle applications
Products and services
- Gray Iron Castings High-quality gray iron castings produced using green sand vertical molding processes at multiple US foundries, used in automotive, commercial vehicle, off-highway, and industrial applications.
- Ductile Iron Castings Ductile iron castings offering enhanced strength, durability, and impact resistance compared to gray iron, produced at Marinette, Etowah, and Tell City plants for demanding applications across multiple market segments.
- High-Strength Ductile Iron (HNM Series) Proprietary high-strength ductile iron alloy developed in collaboration with Hitachi Metals, enabling lighter weight components while maintaining or improving strength and durability for automotive and commercial vehicle lightweighting applications.
- Austempered Ductile Iron (ADI) Heat-treated ductile iron with superior strength-to-weight ratio and wear resistance, used in high-performance automotive and commercial vehicle applications.
- Compact Graphite Iron Castings High-grade iron castings produced with compacted graphite iron metallurgy for advanced strength and thermal properties; one of the core materials manufactured by Waupaca Foundry, melting more than 9,500 tons per day across its product lines.
- Machining Services In-house machining capabilities finishing cast parts to tight tolerances (less than one-thousandth of an inch), including dedicated machining facilities such as the Waupaca Machine Center for commercial-vehicle brake components.
- Heat Treatment Services Heat treatment processes to achieve specific material properties, including austempering for austempered ductile iron (ADI) production.
- Painting and Finishing Services Painting and finishing services for cast components including powder coating applications, enabling delivery of finished components ready for OEM assembly lines.
- Light Assembly Services Light assembly operations to deliver finished components ready for installation in customer end products.
- VA/VE (Value Analysis/Value Engineering) Collaborative engineering services that optimize casting designs, reduce costs, eliminate waste, and improve quality using 3D laser scans, digital imaging, and MAGMA iron flow simulations.
- Lightweighting Solutions Design optimization services that reduce component weight while maintaining or improving strength, supporting CAFE standards compliance and material cost reduction.
- 3D Printed Sand Cores Additive manufacturing service using ExOne S-Max Pro sand 3D printing to produce complex core assemblies as single pieces, reducing waste to less than 1% and improving quality compared to traditional multi-piece core assemblies.
- Rapid Prototyping Services Rapid prototyping solutions using five in-house prototyping methods with same processes and materials as full-scale production, enabling faster product development and testing.
Quantifiable outcome
- Reduced core waste to less than 1% using 3D printed ceramic sand cores (from 67% waste with multi-piece assembly)
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use Waupaca Foundry
Customer profileNamed customers11 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
Waupaca Foundry technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature6 records
Waupaca Foundry partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Dotson Iron CastingsminorManufacturing alliance where Waupaca Foundry customers requesting horizontal molding access Dotson's capabilities through a streamlined supply chain managed by Waupaca. Dotson recently installed new horizontal molding capacity.
- Kohler Industrial CastingsminorManufacturing alliance providing horizontal molding capabilities to Waupaca Foundry customers. Kohler recently installed new horizontal molding capacity, and Waupaca manages the streamlined supply chain.
- Hitachi Metals Automotive Components USA (HMAC)coreMerger finalized in April 2016 combining Waupaca Foundry with HMAC, a division of Hitachi Metals. The merger solidifies Waupaca's vision to increase revenue and profitability while maintaining diversity across markets and sectors, particularly strengthening automotive market position.
- Oil Tool Solutions (OTS)coreCo-development partnership to design and produce the Hulk SlimCast ductile iron clamp for 5-1/2 inch wellbore applications. Collaboration resulted in 75% tooling cost reduction, 12% weight reduction, and localized US supply chain with 4-month faster speed to market.
- AmerequipcoreCollaboration resulting in the first-to-market cast-iron backhoe bucket for compact utility tractors. The partnership won 2022 Casting of the Year award from American Foundry Society and reshored production to US supply base.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves12 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Waupaca Foundry competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Grede Castings: One of North America's largest independent iron foundries producing gray and ductile iron castings for automotive, commercial vehicle, and industrial markets. Closest like-for-like competitor in scale, customer base, and product mix.
- Nemak: Mexican-headquartered global powertrain and chassis casting supplier serving major automotive OEMs with both aluminum and iron castings. Directly competes with Waupaca in iron chassis and drivetrain components.
- Shenango Industries (Penn United Technologies): Pennsylvania-based iron and steel foundry producing ductile and gray iron castings for industrial, heavy equipment, and infrastructure customers. Comparable in process technology and end markets.
- Dotson Iron Castings: Minnesota-based iron foundry that has a manufacturing alliance with Waupaca for horizontal molding. Operates gray and ductile iron lines serving similar industrial and heavy-equipment end markets.
- Tupy SA: Brazilian-headquartered global producer of complex structural iron castings for automotive, commercial vehicle, and off-highway. Comparable in process technology, customer type, and global iron-casting leadership.
- Kohler Industrial Castings: Iron foundry affiliated with Kohler Co. and a strategic horizontal-molding partner to Waupaca. Competes for similar iron casting applications and shares customer/end-market overlap.
- Iochpe-Maxion: Brazilian-based global producer of automotive wheels and iron castings, including the former Hayes Lemmerz iron foundry operations. Directly competes in commercial vehicle and automotive iron casting markets.
Broad incumbents
- American Axle & Manufacturing: Automotive Tier 1 supplier of driveline, powertrain, and casting components. While much larger and a customer of iron foundries, it overlaps with Waupaca's driveline component applications and competes for chassis casting wallet share.
- Benteler Automotive: Global automotive supplier with iron and aluminum casting capabilities serving chassis and powertrain. Competes for similar OEM casting programs across multiple vehicle platforms.
Emerging players
- Atlas Foundry Company: US-based specialty iron foundry with comparable iron casting capability but a smaller, more regional footprint. Represents niche/competitive overlap for industrial and infrastructure castings.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Waupaca Foundry social profiles
Digital presenceWaupaca Foundry compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance8 records
Waupaca Foundry financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Waupaca Foundry leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles11 records
Waupaca Foundry funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Waupaca Foundry M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Waupaca Foundry
What does Waupaca Foundry do?
Waupaca Foundry manufactures gray iron, ductile iron, high-strength ductile iron (HNM Series), austempered ductile iron (ADI), and compacted graphite iron castings using green sand vertical molding and horizontal molding processes. The company delivers end-to-end capabilities from raw castings to machined, heat-treated, painted, and assembled components ready for OEM assembly lines, serving automotive OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, off-highway, commercial vehicle, rail, oil & gas, fitness, and industrial customers.
Is Waupaca Foundry a public or private company?
Waupaca Foundry is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Waupaca Foundry founded?
Waupaca Foundry was founded in 1948. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is Waupaca Foundry based?
Waupaca Foundry is headquartered in Waupaca, United States, in the North America region.
How does Waupaca Foundry make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Iron Casting Sales are the primary driver. The others are value-Added Machining and Assembly.
Who are Waupaca Foundry's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Grede Castings, Nemak, Shenango Industries (Penn United Technologies), Dotson Iron Castings, Tupy SA, Kohler Industrial Castings and Iochpe-Maxion. Broad incumbents are American Axle & Manufacturing and Benteler Automotive. Atlas Foundry Company is listed as an emerging player.
Does Waupaca Foundry have an API?
No public API is recorded for Waupaca Foundry.