A Brief History Of
Gamma Foundries Company

From a small family business serving the Ontario market, to present day as part of Victaulic's multinational Company serving all of North America, Gamma Foundries' main focus has always been on the needs of its customers. Gamma is committed to embracing the technology, processes and systems required to meet these needs every time.


The Beginning
Gamma Foundries was established in 1959 by the late Andrew Farago and his wife, Elizabeth. The first foundry was located in Richmond Hill approximately two miles from the present location, producing castings up to 650 Ibs. In 1971, the company moved to the plant one location at 75 Newkirk Road which was nearly six times the original facility at 11,500 square feet.


The Next Step
In 1980, entrepreneur Paul Helliwell purchased 50% of the company, bringing a progressive outlook and the necessary capital to fuel a new era of growth. In 1982 the plant doubled in size with the B foundry expansion, plus the addition of plant two at 115 Newkirk Road. In this plant, a new laboratory was added to maintain the integrity of our alloys and to monitor our five separate sand systems. With two further expansions to plant two during the nineties, Gamma now boasts 115,000 square feet of foundry space. With the retirement of Elizabeth Farago in 1993, Mr. Helliwell acquired her shares and continued to head the operation with our President, Gordon South and Vice President, Erhard Kotowski as minority shareholders.


Further Progress
After a long search, Gamma purchased Progress Machining Co. in 1998. This added machining capabilities to our foundry and enabled us to further service our customers' needs for finished components. Although Progress was a small operation with five CNC machines, they brought key operational personnel experienced in machining castings to the company. Almost immediately, construction began and in August 1999, a modern 15,000 square foot machine shop behind plant two was completed. This facility now employs over 25 people operating over 20 high to medium production machines on a two shift basis.


The Present
In October 2000, Gamma Foundries was acquired by Victaulic Company, the world's leading developer and producer of mechanical piping systems. Victaulic currently operates three high volume ductile iron foundries and understands our industry intimately. Their ownership will further strengthen our position and allow us to continue the positive growth that every organization requires to remain vibrant and dynamic.