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Waukesha Foundry Company

Richards and Sunset avenues

1958

08 27 Perfect safety record achieved by local branch plant again in 1957 WDT

1982

07 21 Waukesha Foundry Division, Abex Corp, announced plans to build a $4.3 million, 40,000 square foot addition in Watertown, and named Larry Palzewic superintendent of the new facility. Frank M. Holmes, general manager of manufacturing at the parent plant, said plans to expand the Watertown investment facility were finished by the board of directors this week. Palzewic said the new facility will produce stainless steel castings, while the old building will be kept in use, primarily for copper-based, nickel-silver and bronze castings. Most of the plant's current employees will work in the new foundry and more employees will be hired as the workload increases. WDT

09 01 Waukesha Foundry, a division of Abex, will be allowed to build an extension within 15 feet of Sunset Avenue but the firm will have to meet several conditions set by the Watertown Board of Zoning Appeals. There were few objections at a public hearing Aug. 24 to the variance itself, but the conditions set by the board aim at allaying concerns expressed by residents of the Richard’s Hill area about noise and air pollution. Although located in an industrial cluster, Waukesha Foundry, 661 South Twelfth Street, is near a residential neighborhood, across the street from Washington Park and within view of Webster School. The company’s property is bounded by Sunset Avenue on the north, Richards Avenue on the east, Sherman Street on the southeast, the Milwaukee Road tracks on the southwest and Twelfth Street on the west. WDT

1983

06 14 Residents can get a first-hand look at Waukesha Foundry's new 40,000 square foot investment casting plant at an open house Sunday. The $4.1 million facility, located at the corner of Richards and Sunset avenues, is one of the most advanced in the United States. Special features include two programmable dipping robot systems, automatic conveyers for controlled drying of casting molds, among the largest wax presses and melting furnaces in the industry and a “quality assurance monorail” system. WDT

1989

03 27 The Watertown plant of Waukesha Foundry Division of Abex Inc., has temporarily stopped production this week, due to a slower business demand. Eugene Drape, president of Abex Cast Products, said the approaching Easter holiday and the shorter work week also influenced the decision. “We’re just having a week of vacation. We’re shutting it down for a week because of a low work load at this time,” Drape said. “It’s not uncommon.” WDT

09 24 The Waukesha Foundry Unit of the Henley Group has been sold, but the fate of the Watertown plant is uncertain. Three top executives from Waukesha Foundry have purchased the firm from the Henley Group of La Jolla, Calif., for an undisclosed price. The new owners, who have renamed the company Waukesha Foundry Inc., are: Barry Kerwin, president and a 22-year veteran of the firm; Gary W. Evans, vice president of sales and marketing; and Jeffrey G. Richter, vice president of finance. Richter has been employed at the company since 1984, and Evans began in 1985.

Waukesha Foundry has operated a casting plant in Watertown at 661 S. Twelfth St.

A receptionist at the Watertown plant answered telephone calls today with the phrase “W.I.F. Corporation.” WDT