SIDNEY — Ross Casting & Innovation, LLC (RCI), headquartered at 402 Kuther Road in Sidney, will close its aluminum casting division, laying off its 107 of its 135 employees, on March 5, 2022.

The Sidney location is home to two divisions, the casting division operations and the mill wheel operations division. Last year, both divisions produced a total of roughly $15 million in sales. The mill wheel operations, located in the same building, will continue in Sidney.

Robert (“Bob”) Zangri, CFO, stated, “On Jan. 4, 2022, Ross Casting and Innovation, LLC (RCI) announced it will be closing its casting division operations in Sidney, Ohio, effective March 5. RCI arrived at this decision after careful analysis of its casting division and concluded that the closure was necessary to continue successful business operations. RCI is grateful for the dedicated service of its employees and regrets the impact this will have on them and on the local community. This decision was not made lightly and in no way reflects RCI’s appreciation for its employees and the city of Sidney, Ohio.”

According to its website, rciwheels.com, the parent company, Ross Aluminum Foundries’ Avon Division, which is based in the state of Delaware, is over 75 years old and is a supplier of automotive and industrial aluminium casting products, that serves as “a world leader in R&D and production of cold-side turbocharger compressor wheels.”

Over two decades ago, the Ohio Secretary of State received an application on Nov. 15, 1999, from the company to begin doing business operating as a foreign (out-of-state) limited liability company under the name of RAF Acquisition LLC. On Jan. 20, 2000, the company began doing business under the name of Ross Aluminum Foundries LLC, and then changed its name to Ross Casting and Innovation LLC in 2007. It was a member of the Sidney-Shelby County Chamber of Commerce since 2008.

As of Nov. 11, 2016, the entity acting as the company’s representative agent was registered with the Ohio Secretary of State as Corporation Service Company, located at 50 W. Broad St., Suite 1330, in Columbus.

In 2020, the Sidney Daily News previously reported that RCI shut down its plant temporarily in March due to the Ohio Department of Health’s Stay at Home Order. Then, on May 29, 2020, a large, pressurized tank explosion occurred, causing structural damage at the location and injuring two employees who were taken to Wilson Memorial Hospital. The health-related layoffs and accident do not appear to be related to the decision to close the casting division.