HISTORY OF Keokuk Steel Castings
- 1918 organized as Fluid Compressed Steel Company of Keokuk to implement a new process for spinning cannon and gun barrels.
- 1922 contracted by Springfield boiler company to cast boiler headers. The foundry is expanded to four times its original size – renamed Keokuk Steel Castings
- 1931 the foundry is abandoned during the depression and remained vacant for five years. 1936 Walter J. Miller purchases half interest in Springfield boiler company; Harry D. McChesney, Walter A. Miller, and Karl G. Jansson are installed as the management team of new Keokuk Steel Castings Company
- 1946 remaining interest of Springfield Boiler Company is purchased and Walter A. Miller is installed as President and Chief Executive Officer. Kast Metals Corporation is formed
- 1950 Mid-Continent Foundry is purchased in Shreveport Louisiana from J. B. Beaird Company and is added to Kast Metals Corporation
- 1955 HICA Corporation foundry is built to produce stainless and high alloy castings in Shreveport Louisiana. 1967 Mid-Continent II foundry is built in Shreveport Louisiana. This expands Kast Metals Corp. to an annual capacity of more than 35,000 tons. Keokuk Steel Castings makes 10,600 tons.
- 1973 Mississippi River flood wall breaks and floods the entire Keokuk plant sending plans for renovation and expansion down the river along with many existing assets.
- 1974 Keokuk Steel Castings acquires 25 acres from Henry Lew located between Highway 218 and 61 bypass
- 1976 Keokuk Steel Castings company builds the Hawkeye foundry while still maintaining finishing and heat treating operations at the Riverfront plant
- 1987 NACO purchases the Keokuk foundry. The company initiates international procurement of metal castings for resale in the USA.
- 1989 A steel casting sourcing business is formalized as part of the business group with the creation of National Engineered Products Company, Inc. (NEPCO)
- 1990 NACO signs major sole distribution and technology transfer agreement with Mexican foundry known as Acerlan Foundry.
- 1993 Mississippi River floods riverfront plant. Business offices are moved to 600 Morgan street and the finishing operations are moved to vacant Midwest Carbide facility on Carbide Lane in Keokuk.
- 1996 Keokuk becomes ISO 9000 certified
- 1999 ABC-NACO Inc. is formed as a result of the merger of the publicly held ABC Rail Products Corporation and the privately held NACO, Inc. Company rebuilds and re-tools Richmond foundry to produce construction undercarriage equipment and manganese track castings.
- 2000 Keokuk Steel Castings acquires the vacant Stone Container building on a lease to purchase agreement and moves all finishing from Carbide Lane and the business offices from 600 Morgan Street to 3972 Main Street. 2001 Matrix Metals, LLC was formed merging Keokuk, Richmond, and NEPCO and is acquired by the Jeffries Capital Partners with certain assets of the locomotive, flow control and specialty products division of ABC-NACO.
- 2002 Matrix Metals, LLC signs sole-sourcing distribution agreement with Sanmar Foundry, LTD of India
- 2003 Matrix Metals, LLC acquires 100% ownership of the Acerlan Foundry Mexico’s largest steel foundry.
- 2007 Keokuk Steel castings completes purchase of the Stone Container building.
- 2008 Matrix Metals, LLC is acquired by the Sanmar Group
- 2009 Matrix Metals, LLC headquarters are set up in Richmond Texas.
- 2011 Keokuk Steel Castings achieves notoriety as a Material Organization by obtaining ASME Quality System Certification to supply steel castings to the nuclear industry. 2015 Sanmar Group announces closure of Keokuk Steel Castings Company.
- 2015 In December, the Sanmar Group announces closure of Keokuk Steel Castings Company.
- 2016 In June, a deal is struck for the purchase of Keokuk Steel Castings by Brad and Annie Mills, a local entrepreneurial couple with extensive experience in foundry resurrections. The sale is completed on November 30th.
- 2017 Only forty days after Keokuk Steel Castings re-opens, following eleven months of downtime, the first heat of metal is poured marking the beginning of a new chapter in American steel. Keokuk Steel Castings foundry is re-born!