Earlier today, Mercury Marine held an event to announce that it has “commissioned” the largest high-pressure die-casting machine—a 4,500-ton piece of equipment from Buhler-Prince—in North America. The news was announced in a press release from the Fond du Lac, Wis., marine engine and accessories company.

Installation began late in 2016 and was completed in late March 2017, according to the release.

Mercury Marine officials celebrated the company’s new benchmark-setting die-casting machine in a ceremony this morning.

“This new machine positions us to make castings that no one else in the industry can do,” said Mike Meyer, general manager, Mercury Castings, in the release. “With this new machine, Mercury can make larger, lightweight structural components and reduce the overall weight of our engine by producing more efficient castings.”

The new machine has 4,500 tons of closing force with three industrial robots integrated into the cell. With tools and oil, the total weight of the machine with is more than one million pounds. The new machine can produce large, structural components for the high-horsepower marine segment, and even other segments such as automotive.

“This new, state-of-the-art casting machine on our campus gives us the opportunity to continue to drive growth for the business,” said John Pfeifer, Mercury Marine president, in the release. “This investment is one of many milestones on Mercury’s investment journey to support our customers now and into the future.”

Since 2009, Mercury Marine reportedly has invested more than $800 million in research and development and manufacturing expansion at its Fond du Lac facility.

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