Linamar Corp. is buying certain assets of Aludyne Inc.’s North American organization in a $300-million deal it stated will expand its U.S. manufacturing footprint and add automotive aluminum casting, precision machining, and product design capabilities. It’s the second significant purchase in less than a week for Ontario-based Linamar, which is also buying GF Casting Solutions’ Leipzig, Germany, ductile iron foundry in an estimated $52-million transaction.
The Linamar announcement did not stipulate that all 15 Aludyne U.S. locations and their employees would be included in its purchase. It described Aludyne as “highly complementary to Linamar’s existing Structures and Chassis business,” and added that the sale would close within 30 days, pending customary regulatory approvals.
The buyer gave emphasis to Aludyne’s product portfolio that includes steering knuckles, subframes, control arms, and axle housings, and noted that it “aligns with Linamar’s strategic focus on propulsion-agnostic structural components.”
“This acquisition enhances our leadership in propulsion-agnostic, lightweight aluminum casting and machining technologies,” according to executive chairwoman Linda Hasenfrtz. “Aludyne’s proprietary light metalcasting technology offers great growth opportunity to our structural casting business and further strengthens our Mobility business.”
Linamar produces castings at two locations in Canada (including a planned gigacasting operation in Welland, Ont.) and three in the U.S., in Indiana, Michigan, and North Carolina. The same unit has multiple forging operations, too.
“This is another example of how Linamar’s strong financial position, operational excellence, and history of successful integrations create new opportunities in the market. It also reinforces supply chain stability for our OEM customers,” stated president and CEO Jim Jarrell. “We look forward to completing the transaction and integrating Aludyne North America into our global Mobility operations.”
Aludyne Inc. is a specialty supplier of aluminum, magnesium, and cast iron automotive castings, including chassis, subframe, body structural components, and electric vehicle parts. Headquartered in Southfield, MI, the organization was known as Chassix. It was formed in 2013 by a merger of casting group SMW Automotive LLC and specialty machining specialist Diversified Machine Inc.
Nine of the organization’s 15 U.S. locations - in Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, Tennessee, and Wisconsin - have casting capabilities, including pressure counter pressure casting (PCPC); high pressure diecasting (HPDC); vacuum riserless casting (VRC); pressure riserless casting (PRC); gravity diecasting; green sand casting; and ductile iron casting.
Aludyne also has casting and machining operations in China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Norway, and Poland.
