NASCAR champion Brad Keselowski founds hybrid manufacturing company

NASCAR racing champion Brad Keselowski is driving his career in a new direction with the launch of Keselowski Advanced Manufacturing (KAM), a new hybrid manufacturing company. Based in Statesville, North Carolina, KAM aims to become one of the most advanced and sophisticated manufacturing facilities in the U.S.

More than just sitting behind the wheel, Keselowski has been actively involved and interested in manufacturing throughout his NASCAR career and really his whole life. With a grandfather who made drill bits for the military in WWII and a father and uncle who built and raced their own cars, Keselowski grew up with a strong appreciation for manufacturing, which followed him into his career as a NASCAR racer. Now, the NASCAR champion is channeling his expertise into a new venture.

Keselowski presented his new company today at the KAM facility in Statesville. The facility, which spans 70,000 square feet and houses tens of millions of dollars worth of equipment, currently employs 30 people. By the end of the year, Keselowski expects to have up to 100 people working at the hybrid manufacturing facility.

Notably, the company, which will produce metal parts using a combination of additive and subtractive manufacturing processes, has already brought on a number of high profile partners, including GE Additive, ALSCO, BIG KAISER, Mazak Corp and Pinnacle X-Ray Solutions. By leveraging technologies from these companies, KAM aims to produce parts with superior quality at lower costs and faster rates.

“The capabilities of new technologies are limited only by our imaginations and willingness to act,” said Keselowski. “Until now, much of this advanced manufacturing technology was considered too complex and too expensive for production level applications. By combining additive manufacturing with subtractive capabilities, the goal of KAM is to lead the way for the next industrial revolution by making these technologies more accessible.”

By combining metal additive and subtractive manufacturing processes, KAM aims to offer high-tech solutions for customers in a range of industries including automotive, motorsports, OEM, aerospace, defense and energy. A main part of the company’s business will be to scale up hybrid manufacturing to a production level, offering engineering expertise along with speed and quality for an end-to-end service.

“Manufacturing built our country, enabling the strength and freedom we’ve all enjoyed,” Keselowski added. “Today, the advancements in manufacturing will spark a new wave of American companies, not only creating jobs, but also solving some of the world’s biggest problems—from helping the environment to improving our safety. At KAM, we’ve assembled the talent, resources and technology to conquer these challenges. I am confident that our work will have a positive impact for generations to come.”

Presently, the KAM facility is equipped with a range of manufacturing equipment, including two GE Concept Laser M2 Multi-laser 3D printers and Mazak CNC equipment. To complete the end-to-end solution, the facility also houses state-of-the-art design and engineering software, powder analysis tools, post-processing equipment, mechanical testing, scanning and quality assurance resources.

The company hopes its cutting edge hybrid manufacturing capabilities will help to ring in a new generation of American manufacturers and ultimately push the industrial 4.0 revolution ahead.