Page 16 - MetalForming August 2016

Fiber Laser
Keeps
RealWheels
Rolling
A new fiber-laser cutting machine has enabled this Chicago-area fabricator to put the pedal to the medal in churning out wheel and axle covers, grills and more for trucks and specialty vehicles.
The saying goes, “If you bought it, a truck brought it.” True enough, as trucking moves America—80 percent of all U.S. goods are transported via this vital trans- portation mode. With the growing economy, the purchase of products will continue to rise, in turn creating more jobs for the trucking industry. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows a 21-percent growth in the segment through 2020.
This forecast is great news for Chicago, IL-based Real- Wheels Corp., which has been designing and producing stainless-steel wheel and axle covers, grills, billet aluminum door handles, billet pedals, and other accessories for com- mercial trucks and specialty vehicles for nearly 40 years. While competitors have turned to China to cut costs, Real- Wheels reportedly remains the only American manufacturer of these wheel accessories, relying on employee dedication, innovation, efficiency and quality to remain competitive.
RealWheels traces its roots to 1978, when Jan Polka, the company’s founder and president, decided to dress up the cast spoke wheels on his Kenworth commercial truck. He grabbed some sheetmetal and headed to a shop to cut, form and chrome mag-wheel covers. These updated wheels were such an improvement that other truckers started asking where he got them. Shortly after fabricating that first set, Jan and his wife, Sherri, started RealWheels, manufacturing wheel covers out of their garage. Demand continued to grow
14 MetalForming/August 2016
www.metalformingmagazine.com
Chicago-based RealWheels fabri- cates various deco- rative, yet functional, automotive parts. Thanks to the addition of a fiber-laser cutting machine, the company has upped productivity significantly on these parts, including grille covers for limit- ed-edition Chicago Blackhawks Camaros.