version of the company's present diamond-shaped logo saw the day. It has remained in use in substantially the same recognizable format ever since. The American Metal Products Company slowly expanded its activities into the production of aluminium bronze alloys as sand castings, forgings and centrifugal castings. The company was renamed "AMPCO METAL" in 1930, by which time it had built itself a reputation as a reliable producer of high quality alloys. The Second World War strongly increased the demand for copper-based alloys and industrial bronzes, especially in the field of aeronautics. By 1944, manufacturing operations had grown from 100 to 2,500 employees, and every American airplane carried AMPCO METAL parts somewhere in its structure—in its engines, landing gear, propellers or airframe. In the marine environment, AMPCO METAL propellers were manufactured for landing barges and ships, and generally, AMPCO METAL alloys could be found in most sectors of military operations. Innovation was an important part of company philosophy from the outset. From 1922 onward into the 1970s, intensive research was done on the development of special non-sparking, non-magnetic hand tools for highly specialised fields such as the petroleum and natural gas industries, fire fighting and prevention, and the non-ferrous-metal welding sector. Centrifugally-cast bronzes, special hard bronzes for tooling and die applications, nickel-aluminium bronzes, high-strength aeronautical alloys as well as high-conductivity welding electrodes were all flagship products in these diverse industries. From the late 1950s, AMPCO METAL developed an extensive sales and distribution network in different countries, primarily across Europe, in order to increase contact with its various markets. In the 1970s, AMPCO METAL became the first alloy producer certified by the ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) and in the 1980s, the first company to use EPC (Evaporative Pattern Casting) manufacturing processes in copper-based alloy production. In 2003, AMPCO METAL launched a sales and marketing department in Tianjin, China. AMPCO METAL is now active on three continents and in twelve countries. References External links AMPCO METAL web site Manufacturing companies established in 1914 1914 establishments in Wisconsin Manufacturing companies of Switzerland