June 8, 2007 — Hensley Industries Inc. started operations at its new Chinese foundry in April, and the Dallas-based company now reports that Hensley Lingfeng will produce at an estimated rate of 500 tons/month during 2007. The new foundry, in the city of Ningbo, is designed with a capacity is 900 tons/month — three times the capacity of Hensley's former foundry in China.

Hensely is a subsidiary of construction and material-handling equipment builder Komatsu Ltd., and produces ground engaging tools, buckets, and specialized attachments for construction and earthmoving machinery. Hensley Lingfeng uses eight 250-kg induction furnaces to melt iron and lost-wax molding to produce teeth and adapters ranging in size from 0 to 38 kilograms (1 to 85 lb.)

According to Ralph Huebner, Hensely Industries exec. vice president and v.p. - Sales & Marketing, “It is critical to maintain consistent quality across all of our production facilities in order to maintain the integrity of the Hensley brand. I can assure our customers that Hensley Lingfeng is producing some of the highest quality castings within the Hensley network of foundries.”