Plant Closure Leads to Austemper Department “Shutdown”
Following an announcement in August, the company moved ahead in October with plans to eliminate 170 jobs and close the plant on Mill Street near Ainsworth Pet Nutrition. As recently as the first quarter of 2026, the company ranked as Crawford County’s 24th-largest employer and 10th-largest industrial employer, according to the state Department of Labor & Industry. From outside the company, there was little to suggest a problem at the plant, which was founded in 1983. “We had zero advance warning. This came out of the blue,” said Jim Becker, executive director of the Economic Progress Alliance of Crawford County, the county’s industrial development agency. Becker said his organization visits many of the county’s employers to help identify problems and determine how it can help.
“This was a company we never got into,” he said. “I don’t know if we could have done anything. Second closing in two years for owner of plant According to the company’s website, the Meadville plant had unique capabilities. Grede described Advanced Cast Products as a ductile iron foundry with a programmed heat-treating line “that allows us to boast the only salt-to-salt austempering line in the (North American foundry market).” The Meadville closure follows another plant shutdown by Grede. In 2025, the company discontinued operations at its 50-year-old foundry in Brewton, Alabama, eliminating more than 160 jobs Paul C. Lynch, an associate professor of engineering at Penn State Behrend and an authority in metal casting, was familiar with the Meadville plant, but not the reason for the closure.
“A lot of places don’t have enough capacity as work starts to onshore. I’m not sure what transpired,” he said. While many manufacturers are looking for employees, Lynch called the closure unfortunate. “I hate to hear the words job losses,” he said. Becker agreed, saying there is nothing he can say to minimize the disruption the 170 layoffs will cause 170 employees and their families. The good news, he said, is that most companies in Crawford County’s manufacturing sector are hiring. The most recent numbers from the state Department of Labor & Industry shows Crawford County with about 7,000 manufacturing employees. “This is unfortunate and troubling for these people,” Becker said. “But there are a lot of job opportunities available in Crawford County with manufacturing and related career fields.”
