A new zinc diecasting operation has set up operation in Rockford, IL, aiming to produce zinc components for locking mechanisms in seatbelt devices. Taurus Die Casting LLC is one of three companies granted a tax credit by the city in exchange for commitments to establish new businesses with new employment. The diecaster reportedly will invest $6.4 million in a 44,000-ft2 plant, where it will employ 37 full-time workers, like diecasting and CNC finishing machine operators.
Roberto Marselli, president and CEO of the new operation, indicated employment could rise to 75 within five years.
Taurus Die Casting is a new operating unit of Taurus ’80, a subsidiary of Continuus-Properzi, an Italian builder of wheel and belt continuous casting machinery, and direct rolling processes for nonferrous rods. Taurus started producing high-precision diecastings, 1 to 800 grams, in Zamak alloys — a family of materials with a base metal of zinc and alloying elements of aluminum, magnesium, and copper — in 1980, near Torino, Italy. In 2008, the company set up a second plant in Menzel Bourguiba, Tunisia.
The group’s diecastings include parts for automotive safety system (e.g., steering locks and starter switches) and parts for non-automotive products (like home appliances, and electric motors.) It also offers product and mold design and development services, cast part finishing operations, and various surface treatments.
Marselli said the selection of Rockford for the new plant was based on the local availability of a skilled workforce, as well as the regional manufacturing sector. “Our customers, our suppliers are in the U.S., mostly in the Midwest. That's where the growth is,” he told local reporters. “So this is where we needed to be. The labor force here is key.”