A group of investors and financial support from the State of Illinois are funding the reopening of a commercial vehicle braking systems factory in Rockford, Illinois, whose operations include a recycled-content grey iron foundry.
Two announcements in the past 60 days from Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) indicate four former employees have been key players in the creation of Rockford Brake Manufacturing, which will restart production assets at a site described by the governor’s office as Rockford’s longest-standing factory.
The four former Gunite Corp. executives have invested $6.6 million to restart the foundry and downstream brake component operations. Gunite and its parent company Accuride International Inc., Santa Fe Springs, California, operated the complex when it shut its doors this February…