What Willman Industries does

Willman Industries, Inc. is a family-owned US iron foundry headquartered in Cedar Grove, Wisconsin, approximately 40 miles north of Milwaukee. Founded in 1899 as Wisconsin Foundry and Steel Works, the operation has been owned by the Willman family since 1987 when Clay Willman, a Michigan Tech metallurgy graduate, exercised his purchase option from Medalist Industries; current leadership spans Todd Willman (President & CEO) and Reggie Willman (President, fourth generation, full-time since 2019). The company runs a 170,000+ square foot foundry complex with two facilities supporting a broad production envelope: green sand molding for castings from 1 lb to 1,500 lbs, and no-bake molding for complex castings from 100 lbs to 40,000 lbs, backed by three 9-ton coreless furnaces totaling 100 tons of daily melting capacity.

The product portfolio spans approximately 40 grades of iron, including grey iron (Class 20-55), ductile iron (standard ASTM/A536 grades plus proprietary solution-strengthened variants 75-55-21, 80-60-18, 90-65-15), and austempered ductile iron (ADI), produced under Meehanite certification and ISO 9001:2015 quality management. Willman Engineering Group provides solidification modeling, 3D laser scanning (Faro), pattern and gating/rigging design, and prototyping; Quality Assurance includes CMM, hardness, and full NDT (magnetic particle, dye penetrant, ultrasonic, X-ray). The company operates as a direct, quote-based jobbing foundry selling custom iron castings to industrial OEM customers across construction & mining equipment, power generation, military & defense, agricultural equipment, oil & gas equipment, gears & transmissions, valves & pumps, and recycling industries. Named enterprise customers include Caterpillar, John Deere, Case New Holland, and Trane, with the John Deere 8R/8RX front hitch support casting winning AFS Casting of the Year 2026. Revenue mechanics are per-part pricing determined by weight, material grade, complexity, and volume, with FOB-origin shipment and 30-day payment terms; the company has remained debt-free and profitable every year since the 1987 family acquisition.

Name

Willman Industries

Legal name

Willman Industries, Inc.

Website

https://willmanind.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1899

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Willman Industries is a family-owned US iron foundry in Cedar Grove, Wisconsin, producing engineered grey, ductile, and austempered ductile iron castings (1–40,000 lbs) for Fortune 500 OEMs in construction, agriculture, power generation, military, and oil & gas equipment.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Cedar Grove

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Iron Castings Manufacturing: Willman Industries generates revenue through the manufacture and sale of custom iron castings. As a jobbing foundry, they produce castings from 1 lb to 40,000 lbs across grey iron, ductile iron, and austempered ductile iron. Revenue is derived from per-part pricing based on complexity, weight, material grade, and volume. The company operates on a quote-based pricing model with payment terms of 30 days from invoice date.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Willman Industries is a custom iron foundry producing highly engineered grey iron, ductile iron, and austempered ductile iron (ADI) castings weighing from 1 lb up to 40,000 lbs. The company operates three integrated molding lines (green sand, no-bake, and certified Meehanite), supported by in-house engineering, pattern design, metallurgy controls, and full quality assurance including NDT testing. Output serves industrial OEM customers across construction, mining, agricultural, power generation, military, oil & gas, gears/transmissions, and valves/pumps end uses.

Product overview

Willman Industries operates as a single integrated iron foundry platform offering manufacturing-as-a-service for highly engineered iron castings. The core products include three distinct casting process lines: Green Sand Castings (for volumes 10-5,000+ annually, up to 1,500 lbs), No-Bake Castings (for large complex castings 100-25,000 lbs), and Meehanite Castings (certified proprietary grades). These are supported by multiple iron material types including Grey Iron Castings (Class 20-55), Ductile Iron Castings (standard and solution-strengthened grades), and Austempered Ductile Iron (ADI). Value-adding modules include the Willman Engineering Group (providing solidification modeling, 3D laser scanning, pattern design, and prototyping services) and Quality Assurance Services (offering CMM, non-destructive testing including ultrasonic and X-ray, and metallurgical inspection). The company produces castings ranging from 1 lb to 40,000 lbs for industrial applications including construction equipment, power generation, military/defense, agricultural equipment, and pumps/valves.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Green Sand Castings

Quantifiable outcome

• Scrap rate below 4.5% (internal plus customer returns)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Meehanite InternationalcoreTechnology or IntegrationWillman Industries is a certified Meehanite Foundry, manufacturing castings under the Meehanite quality system. Meehanite is a registered trade name for a family of cast ferrous materials manufactured under specific metallurgical control. Willman has been pouring Meehanite castings for decades and is regularly audited to maintain certification standards. The relationship provides Willman access to proprietary casting grades and quality processes.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Dotson Iron Castings: Mankato, Minnesota-based iron foundry producing ductile iron castings for construction, mining, agricultural, and industrial customers. Comparable in size, product mix, and Midwest US operating footprint.
• Metaltek International: Specialty metal casting manufacturer producing high-alloy iron, steel, and nonferrous castings for industrial markets. Comparable as a custom, engineering-led foundry serving similar heavy industry end markets with a similar focus on complex castings.
• Grede: Major US iron foundry producing grey, ductile, and austempered ductile iron castings for transportation, industrial, and heavy equipment markets. Closely comparable in process technology, material portfolio, and customer base.
• Harrison Steel Castings: Attica, Indiana-based specialty steel foundry producing large castings for heavy equipment, mining, and defense customers. Comparable in casting size range, process technology, and Fortune 500 OEM customer mix, though Willman focuses on iron rather than steel.
• Niagara Castings: Buffalo, NY-based iron foundry producing grey and ductile iron castings up to 25,000 lbs. Comparable in casting size range, no-bake process mix, and heavy equipment customer base.
• Lester Cast Metals: Bedford, Indiana-based iron foundry producing grey and ductile iron castings for industrial OEM customers. Comparable in casting process mix and heavy equipment end markets.
• Waupaca Foundry: One of the largest iron foundries in the US, producing grey and ductile iron castings for heavy equipment, automotive, and industrial OEM customers. Directly comparable as a jobbing iron foundry with overlapping end markets and similar process technology.

Regional players

• Lehigh Heavy Forge Corporation: Bethlehem, PA-based manufacturer of large forged steel components for infrastructure, defense, and industrial markets. Adjacent peer serving similar heavy OEMs, but primarily uses forging rather than casting and operates in a different process category.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/willmanindustries
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/willman-industries-inc.

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Willman Industries