ME Elecmetal has officially inaugurated the Rancagua foundry modernisation project which will increase its production capacity to 36,000 t. The project includes a new special steel foundry; an advanced laboratory for grinding media testing and development; and a modern manufacturing and repair centre for mining equipment.

“This project represents the synthesis of the company vision: to deliver comprehensive solutions that go beyond selling a product, to include additional services that enable its customers to improve their productivity and competitiveness,” said Rolando Medeiros, CEO. Medeiros also said that “the investment involved in the modernisation of the Rancagua plant is about $100 million and involves a significant increase in production
capacity, which will rise from 13,000 t to 36,000 t per year. This investment will allow the company to meet production standards that have their operations in the US and China.”

In late 2015, the company announced the closure of its historic facilities located in Vicuña Mackenna Avenue in Santiago, dating from 1917. Rolando Medeiros emphasised that the vast majority of the production staff of this plant will be hosted in the new facilities of Rancagua. ME Elecmetal has production facilities in Chile, the US and China, plus a licensed foundry in Mexico. It has more than 2,000 employees worldwide and sells its products in more than 35
countries to customers in the mining, construction and industry.