American Precision Die Casting
American Precision Die Casting was formed in June of 2005. As a privately-owned manufacturer of die cast parts made from aluminum alloy 380, American Precision Die Casting (APDC) is located in Cuba, Missouri, about 70 miles southwest of St. Louis just off Interstate 44. The manufacturing facility is 26,600 square feet and situated on five acres of land with plenty of room for future expansions. With a dedicated workforce of 65 associates, APDC runs three shifts, 24 hours each day Monday through Friday (and Saturdays when needed).
APDC’s Mission
American Precision Die Casting has a mission. Knowing that customer success starts with the success of every employee, they strive to always provide an environment that encourages a positive attitude and creative thinking from which their associates will have the opportunity to fully utilize their talents and strengths.
Because customer success is the most important metric by which they measure their own success, they work hard to partner with their customers in a connected way that enables the customer to achieve or exceed their strategic business objectives in this most cost-competitive marketplace.
APDC is driven by a continuous focus on improvement and innovative advancements in all areas of die casting applications because they are dedicated to the never-ending pursuit and attainment of the highest quality and delivery performance standards for their customers. Committed to serve their customers by providing consistent and unsurpassed value supported by the most progressive and responsive customer-oriented team.
American Precision Die Casting is devoted to being part of their customers’ success by providing innovative solutions, flexibility, on-time delivery, and excellence in manufacturing.
Built on Experience
In June of 2005, the story of American Precision Die Casting began. APDC was literally built from the ground up by its five owners: Kevin Hercules, Mark Steele, Mike Clonts, Dave Villmer, and Jim Wilkinson. Starting as a new company with no customers and zero sales but supported by faith, spirit, determination and confidence in ourselves, APDC produced their first casting August 2006. Since this very unique and humble beginning, APDC has developed a very diverse customer base, achieved major growth milestones and evolved into one of the premier manufacturing companies in the die casting industry. As a key differentiated value which has attributed to this success, the ownership of APDC recognized the importance as well as customer need to provide customer-centered die casting services and that has been both a guiding and never-ending objective for which our company will always strive.
Before they broke ground on their new facility, the five owners put their heads together to plot out the best route to creating a manufacturing facility that would not only provide the space needed for die casting, but also provide a layout that was conducive to a cost-effective, lean manufacturing approach to die casting. The facility in Cuba is the result. It reflects their over 100 combined years of knowledge working on the floor, in management, and many other aspects of the die casting and manufacturing industry.
This smart customer-centered approach is what has brought APDC from zero sales to casting near 170 parts for customers in industries ranging from the automotive industry to the military defense industry.
Ownership Group and Technical Leadership
The technical strength, core competencies and dedicated work ethic of the 5 individual owners that make up the APDC partnership represents a cumulative total exceeding over 130 years of management experience, knowledge and expertise in the die casting industry. This becomes very evident in the layout of our plant which has been efficiently designed utilizing input from each member of this group. The core competencies in aluminum die casting applications derived from this partnership provide a wealth of technical talent, knowledge and necessary skill sets within all aspects of Manufacturing, Engineering, Tool & Die, Quality Assurance and related quality systems, Machine Maintenance, Process Control, Automation/Robotics, Value Added Services and Administrative Management.
Philosophy and Strategy
American Precision Die Casting will partner with our customers in a concerted way that enables them to achieve or exceed their strategic business objectives in this most cost competitive market place. Our strategy is simple: Think Big, Act Small in the operation of our business. There will be no financial waste. We will always be focused on creating value, continued operational improvements and just good common business sense stewardship practices. American Precision Die Casting effectively uses a hands-on management style. A key differentiated value that American Precision Die Casting represents to our customers centers around being a low cost producer of quality aluminum die castings supported by problem solving techniques and solutions. A fundamental cornerstone of our business is dedicated to the never ending pursuit and attainment of the highest quality and delivery performance standards for our customers driven by the continuous focus on improvement and innovative advancements in all die casting applications.
Meet the Owners
The synergy represented from the many skill sets and strengths that each partner has acquired during their long tenure in the die casting industry has been an integral part of the continuing success of APDC.
Kevin Hercules
With over 35 years of experience, Kevin oversees the operational objectives and management of the manufacturing, process control, maintenance and tooling design functions at APDC. Having worked in comprehensive management roles and technical capacities throughout his die casting career encompassing involvement with those key elements associated with the manufacturing of die cast parts, Kevin has gained an astute knowledge of equipment capabilities, process parameters, robotics and automation coupled with supportive expertise in the area of gating design features for tooling all of which have greatly helped develop a highly efficient, standardized and robust die casting production process that has truly served as the foundation for our success.
Dave Villmer
As manager of the Tool & Die Department at APDC, the unsurpassed depth of hands-on experience and knowledge that Dave possess and has acquired in this field over the last 30 years speaks volumes of his ability to initiate tooling improvements and manage all aspects of die maintenance and repair. From a Mechanical Engineering standpoint, the prowess of Dave to design and build fixtures, fabricate die cast component parts and develop innovative methods to enhance machinery and equipment capabilities are both immeasurable as well as highly valued.
Jim Wilkinson
Better known as J.W. to those who know him best, Jim directs the administrative, sales & marketing, and customer service interest for APDC. Building a culture throughout our organization dedicated to ensuring that the Quality Objective of APDC, Total Customer Satisfaction, is completely achieved with each and every customer and shipment of parts has been an unrelenting goal shared by Jim and the entire APDC team. Whether working on market development, sales, strategic planning, or simply continuing to identify areas of improvement in customer support and service, the scope of Jim’s efforts will always be designed to grow the business and better serve the customer.
Mark Steele
As Manager of Human Resources at APDC, Mark champions 3 key components of our organizational structure; Safety, Staffing and Training. The priority that APDC puts on safety and providing our employees with the safest working environment is truly highlighted by many safety programs that Mark has successfully implemented and incorporated into the daily operational fabric of our business. With a level of hands-on experience spanning a period of over 3 decades in the die casting industry, Mark puts forth a very focused effort to continually build upon fair and consistent values associated with the important practice of finding and hiring new employees further complimented by the results-oriented achievement of establishing strong employee-employer working relationships with and between all APDC associates. Recognizing the vital importance of a well-trained workforce in today’s competitive market place, Mark has furthered this targeted APDC objective by effectively drawing upon and utilizing a number of valuable training resources that range from securing State Training Grants, to technical training programs offered through local colleges to NADCA industry designed educational training courses.
The Team
APDC’s success starts with every person involved in the day-to-day production. The team of associates is made up of individuals who are invested in the success of APDC. They understand that their job matters to the success of APDC and its customers, and they are actively involved in fine-tuning processes.
Every person goes through rigorous training, learning everything from running the automated cells to recognizing potential problems with a product to developing their own unique skill set.
Learn more about the team and their vested interests in being part of a successful team.
