Posted Wednesday, May 16, 2012 --- 7:40 a.m.

WAUPACA, Wis. (AP) -- A New York private equity firm plans to buy ThyssenKrupp Waupaca Inc., described by industry experts as the largest independent iron foundry in the world.

KPS Capital Partners says it will rename the company Waupaca Foundry Inc. Financial terms of the sale were not disclosed.

The company makes millions of tons of iron castings a year and is North America's largest supplier of castings to the auto, truck, agriculture and construction industries. ThyssenKrupp Waupaca has six manufacturing plants in Wisconsin, Indiana and Tennessee. About 2,300 of its 3,500 employees work in Waupaca and Marinette.

The Journal Sentinel (http://bit.ly/KsRFyY ) says ThyssenKrupp Waupaca is part of ThyssenKrupp AG, a German company with employees in 80 countries. KPS manages more than $2.8 billion in private equity funds.

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Information from: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, http://www.jsonline.com

Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.