Blachford Chemical Group announced that it has acquired Baum’s Castorine (Baum’s), combining two companies with over 250 years of innovation in specialty chemical manufacturing.

A press release said that Baum’s, based in Rome, New York, provides specialty lubricants, greases, and chemical products for the wire drawing, tube and metal-working industries, as well as transportation and industrial markets. Per both companies, Baum’s Castorine will be integrated into Blachford’s global chemical group, leveraging shared resources and expertise to expand product offerings.

Baum’s specific product lines include the Dura Draw series of nonferrous wire drawing lubricants—such as Dura Draw 891 and Dura Draw 895—for copper, brass, and tin-plated copper wire applications; the Tena-Film line of industrial oils, anti-wear and extreme pressure greases (such as Tena-Film No. 300-LTH and No. 150-TH oils); specialty maintenance products for bearings and equipment operating in demanding environments; metalworking fluids; cutting oils; coolant conditioners; and stranding lubricants. It also supplies specialty fire suppression agents under the Novacool® brand, as well as industrial cleaners and surfactants for equipment maintenance.

According to Blachford, the acquisition is expected to build on longstanding reputations for technical excellence and service, with Baum’s product lines of lubricants, process oils and additives complementing Blachford’s existing portfolio of metalworking fluids, anti-tack agents, rolling oils and additives. The combination will strengthen distribution channels in North America and globally, giving customers more options and technical support.

Details of the transaction—including financial terms and transition plans—were not disclosed, but officials said that Baum’s Castorine, founded in 1879, will retain its core team and continue serving under the Blachford umbrella.

Marlin Steel President Drew Greenblatt was presented the 2025 Metalworking Reshoring Award during an industry ceremony held September 11 in recognition of leadership in reshoring and domestic manufacturing.

A press release said that the award, which recognizes companies that have successfully brought metalworking operations back to the U.S., was presented by the Reshoring Initiative in partnership with the Precision Metalforming Association (PMA), the Association for Manufacturing Technology (AMT), SME, the Fabricators and Manufacturers Association (FMA), and the National Tooling and Machining Association (NTMA).

Marlin Steel reshored multiple production lines from overseas, spanning industries including medical devices, food processing and aerospace. Even high-volume commodity items such as pail handles were reshored by applying advanced automation, consistent quality control, and dependable turnaround.

One cited example was that of a U.S.-based buyer who previously sourced from Mexico that moved production of 1,500 custom wire racks to Marlin’s operations in Indiana, with final powder coat painting completed in Michigan. These racks had historically been manufactured in Mexico, but were brought back to the United States to improve turnaround time, simplify logistics, and increase product consistency.

Insights from the 2025 Reshoring Initiative Reshoring Survey further underscore why Marlin’s model works. The survey found that key factors enabling reshoring include skilled workforce training, close collaboration between supply chain and customer engineering, and fast delivery. Marlin’s embodiment of all three has been central to its reshoring success and played a direct role in winning the award.

Marlin Steel expects its reshored revenue to double or even triple in 2026, depending on the volume of upcoming projects, reflecting growing momentum behind reshoring growth fueled by favorable tariff and trade policies.

Charter Steel has significantly expanded its steel wire production capacity in 2025 with a $22.8 million investment focused on its Fostoria, Ohio and Saukville, Wisconsin facilities.

A press release said that the expansion includes the installation of four new wire draw machines at Fostoria and one new draw machine at Saukville. The Fostoria facility was also expanded by about 42,000 sq ft. Three machines are already installed and in the validation phase, while two more are expected to be operational by early 2026.

The move was expected to triple Charter Steel’s wire draw output, supporting customer demand for comprehensive and reliable steel solutions. The upgrades are designed to allow customers to interact with a single, consistent team for the entire steelmaking process—from melting and rolling to processing and finishing—streamlining purchasing with “one-stop shopping” for finished products. The expansion will create about 15 new jobs at Fostoria to staff the additional wire draw machines.

Leggett & Platt (L&P) recently closed the sale of its Aerospace Products Group (APG), an entity outside of its wire production that makes highly engineered tube and duct assemblies for commercial and military aircraft, as part of the company’s ongoing restructuring that started in 2024.

A press release said that the sale of APG, which has seven manufacturing facilities in the U.S., U.K. and France, is expected to net $250 million. The company plans to use most of those funds to pay down debt and strengthen the company’s balance sheet.

The sale was the latest news in a story that traces back to late 2023 when demand for both traditional innerspring bedding and wire grid components faltered. In January 2024, the company announced a sweeping plan in its annual report that called for at least 10 wire-focused plants—integral to the production of springs and mattress foundations—to be either closed or merged. A total of 20 overall plants were targeted.

Per financial media and company reports, the net result is that all wire production is now in four U.S. locations. The latest L&P plant to be closed was the one in Plant City, Florida, where more than 80 employees were let go as operations wound down by the end of the midpoint of 2025. The L&P specialty springs plant in High Point, North Carolina, was closed in September 2024, affecting 158 workers.

Other closures include the Saltillo, Mississippi plant (130 jobs lost in 2024) and the Commerce, California facility (impacting 55 staff). In addition to those plants, four smaller spring and wire operations were consolidated into remaining regional hubs. The actions were deemed needed to improve efficiency, reduce costs and align production capacity with new realities of market demand.

L&P indicated that the final wave of restructuring will be completed by the end of 2025, with ongoing efforts to make its wire business leaner and better positioned for future growth.