'Bright future' for Sivyer Steel under new local ownership

Bettendorf’s Sivyer Steel announced today it’s under new ownership.

A group of local investors bought the 109-year-old company for $6.5-million, after it declared bankruptcy earlier this year.

Sivyer makes steel castings for mining, military, railroad, and oil and gas industries, and demand is going up.

“The uncertainty with U.S. trade policy is causing companies to take a hard look at their supply chain, and they’re looking to resource at least a portion of their buy in the United States today,” says Mike Baxley, CEO of Sivyer Steel Castings LLC.

Sivyer contributes about $25-million a year into the local economy.

Local 4’s James Sears spoke with the new owners, who say it’s about more than just the financial benefits.

“It’s an important part of Bettendorf, an important part of the QC,” says new owner, Scott Tinsman.

At 109 years, Sivyer Steel is one of the oldest continuously-operating steel foundries in the U.S., and the heart and engine of heavy manufacturing right here in the Quad Cities.

CEO Mike Baxley took Local 4 News on a tour inside the plant.

We saw workers making parts for some of the biggest construction, mining, and military equipment out there. 

It’s a difficult thing to do, and do well.

“The specialty in their product that comes from 100 years of tribal knowledge that’s invested in the workforce, that’s hard to replace,” says new owner Joel Lorentzen.

It’s what drew the Lorentzen and Tinsman families to invest, and to believe in people who are more than coworkers.

“When you talk to the employees who work here on the line in hot and difficult conditions, I’ve never seen an organization operate so much like a family, where they had each others backs,” says Tinsman.

Especially in the bad times.

In 2016, the United Steelworkers Union agreed to a ten percent cut in pay to keep the company, and jobs, alive.

“Looking into everything, we believe without that happening they’d only have months and the plant could be shut down,” says Roy Hutt, rep for USW Local 105.

And the gamble paid off.

Today, the bargaining committee has already made five-percent back, with a plan to receive the other five percent in the future.

“A little bit of sacrifice went a long way,” says Hutt.

“I’m proud to be participating in making something good for the community, good for us in the long term, and it’s important to me and my family,” says Lorentzen.

Sivyer Steel is hiring.

It wants to grow the family to 400 employees to reach the plant’s full potential.

We have a link to the company’s website, click here. 

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