MANITOWOC - With ever-increasing demand for its products, Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry announced plans for construction of a new 55,000-square-foot building scheduled to open sometime in summer 2023.

The $20 million expansion will create 80 new jobs and help the foundry’s growth in target markets such as electric vehicles, medical equipment and consumer products, company CEO Sachin Shivaram said.

“The history and legacy of WAF and its founders, the Schwartz family, have always been to look to the future and the opportunities ahead and that is what we are doing,” he said. “We have doubled our business from this time, and nearly tripled it from three years ago.”

The announcement and groundbreaking for the new building came on top of a recognition breakfast and tour for 50 retirees held last Thursday as a kickoff to the long Labor Day weekend.

“From the start, the Schwartz family understood that its future relied on our employees, and that each team member had a pivotal role in the company’s success,” Shivram said. “We wanted to find a way to show employees how important they are to us. Usually, a person’s last day on the job is sort of uneventful, we might order pizza and that’s about it. We started this breakfast last year so we get a chance to honor them. It also gives us a chance to show younger people that this is a good place to work, that people stay with us for a long time and you can make a good life doing this.”

During the breakfast, attendees were given a copy of the recently completed “Never Think You’re Better than the Workers,” which highlights the foundry’s history and the Schwartz family, who founded and led the company since 1909.

WAF also premiered a documentary about the company’s history at the breakfast.

“We are proud of all to honor all of the men and women who have worked here over the years, and also current team members,” Shivram said.

Founded in 1909 as the Manitowoc Brass Foundry by Abraham Schwartz, the company was renamed Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry in 1912. Over the years, the company was led by Abraham and then his sons and grandsons, each working toward growing and diversifying the company’s business, the company said in a news release.

Shivaram was hired as CEO in 2019, becoming the first non-family leader in the company’s history.

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, the company has continued to grow. Earlier this year, WAF acquired castings manufacturer DEE Inc., based in Crookston, Minnesota. The company also purchased the former assets of Wabash Castings, based in Wabash, Indiana, in March 2021.

The foundry has about 500 employees in Manitowoc and more than 750 workers overall.

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Shivaram said that like other companies, finding employees remains a challenge for Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry. WAF has raised pay substantially and offers a $400 stipend to cover child care in hopes of finding and keeping workers.

“The flow is there, and retention is better,” he said. “I think our wide range of benefits and the fact that this is a good place to work has helped us find good workers.”

Construction of the new “green” facility is expected to begin in fall and be completed in May or June of 2023. Production will begin later in summer.

Contact reporter Patti Zarling at 920-606-2586 or send an email to pzarling@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @PGPattiZarling.

This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Wisconsin Aluminum Foundry in Manitowoc to expand, hire 80 workers