US aluminum’s 98% employment shift: Why downstream companies matter

Over the past few years, the employment story of US aluminum industry has been entering chapters from the downstream segment. According to the Aluminum Association, almost 98% of all US aluminum jobs are now concentrated in mid- and downstream processing and recycling, even as employment in primary aluminum has fallen sharply. The Aluminum Association’s latest 2026 economic impact study puts direct industry employment at 165,354 jobs, with the wider aluminum ecosystem supporting 871,464 direct, indirect and induced jobs and generating $326.4 billion in economic output.

The shift is particularly evident in recent employment growth. Between 2024 and 2026, jobs in secondary aluminum production rose 21.9%, aluminum coatings 23.1% and sheet and extrusions 22.2%, while primary aluminum employment has reported substantial decline since 2013. At the same time, the industry has invested more than $11 billion in domestic operations over the past decade, largely across mid- and downstream production and recycling.

This makes downstream aluminum companies a major employment engine for the US market. Their operations span rolling, extrusion, recycling, coatings and other value-added processing that connect aluminum with major manufacturing sectors. The Congressional Research Service has also described downstream as the largest segment of the US aluminum industry, accounting for more than 75% of the industry’s $31.5 billion earnings in 2020.  

To know the global production, demand and consumption forecasts of aluminium extrusions, explore our report “The World of Aluminium Extrusions to 2035 – Demand Forecast | Price Benchmarking | Plant Economics | Strategic Growth Sectors“

Against this backdrop, the role of downstream aluminum companies gain significance. Their investments in manufacturing capacity, recycling, finishing and value-added processing are not only expanding the industry's product base but also sustaining and creating a substantial share of its American jobs.   

Arconic

Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Arconic is a leading US producer of fabricated aluminum sheet, plate, and extrusions serving aerospace, ground transportation, industrial, packaging, and building and construction markets, with roots tracing to 1888.

Products and technologies

• Aluminum sheet and plate, including aerospace-grade and defense-specification products
• Aluminum brazing sheet
• Extruded shapes and seamless tubes
• Architectural and building-system products

• Advanced furnaces and controls for high-purity aluminum production
• Process automation and quality-control systems for rolled and extruded products

Arconic commissioned a $57.5 million high-purity aluminum expansion at Davenport Works (Iowa) in September 2025, supported by a $45.5 million Defense Production Act Title III award received in 2023.

Internationally, Arconic maintains manufacturing and commercial operations in Europe (Hungary, the United Kingdom, Germany and France), Asia (Qinhuangdao and Kunshan in China) and Canada (Lethbridge, Alberta), and describes its rolled-products business as spanning North America, Europe, Asia, Australia and Russia with sites in 19 countries.

Williamson Corporation

Based in Concord, Massachusetts, Williamson Corporation is a family-owned manufacturer of highly accurate, non-contact infrared temperature measurement solutions serving the aluminum extrusion, smelting, and fabricated metals sectors.

Products and technologies

• Multi-wavelength and short-wavelength infrared pyrometers for metals processing
• Temperature-measurement solutions for aluminum extrusion (billet preheat, press exit and other critical points)

• Aluminum-specific measurement algorithms that compensate for alloy-dependent emissivity characteristics
• Non-contact infrared temperature sensing for repeatable, accurate process control

The company expanded partnership with SRB Controls in 2025, making SRB its exclusive representative across Canada for aluminum and industrial-processing markets.

Internationally, Williamson maintains a sales and support office in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India, and works with independent representatives and certified service centres worldwide, including SRB Controls as its exclusive representative across Canada for aluminum and industrial-processing markets. Although it has only one overseas office, Williamson exports its infrared pyrometers to aluminum extruders and metals processors around the world.

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Thermika Systems

Headquartered in Quebec, Canada and serving the North American aluminum extrusion industry, Thermika Systems is a leading manufacturer of infrared die-heating ovens, custom-designed and built entirely in North America.

Products and technologies

• Infrared die-heating ovens for aluminum extrusion (front-loading and top-loading designs)
• Custom-built die-heating systems with tailored control configurations

• Infrared heat-panel technology designed to deliver more uniform die heating than conventional tubular heaters
• Improved insulation, lid-sealing and control features to reduce energy use and operating costs

Thermika’s Its primary market is North America, where its ovens are supplied to extrusion plants across the US and Canada via distributors and direct sales. As a Canadian exporter of die-heating ovens and controls, Thermika supports North American extrusion capacity by improving die conditioning, energy efficiency and start-up consistency, thereby helping US plants serve automotive, construction and industrial customers more competitively.

STAS Inc.

Based in Saguenay, Quebec, STAS is a world leader in equipment for aluminum smelting, casthouse, and extrusion operations, serving primary and downstream producers across North America.

Products and technologies

• Molten-metal degassing systems
• Rotary flux injectors
• In-line refining systems
• Filtration technologies, including the Advanced Compact Filter (ACF)
• Casthouse automation and quality-control equipment
• Inclusion-detection and measurement systems, including BATSCAN®

• ACF filtration technology designed for frequent alloy changes, with inclusion-removal efficiency above 90%, according to the company. 
• BATSCAN®, an in-line ultrasonic system for continuous measurement of inclusion levels in liquid aluminum.

STAS’ BATSCAN scientific publication, developed with Constellium, won the “Best Casthouse Operation Paper Award” at the ICSOBA Forum in Lyon.

STAS serves the global aluminum industry through a representative network in more than 40 countries, including dedicated agents in Australia and China and distributors across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Americas. As a Canadian exporter of casthouse, smelting and extrusion equipment, STAS helps US operations improve metal cleanliness, filtration performance and process control, supporting higher-quality domestic aluminum supply for downstream rolling, extrusion and fabrication.

Alkegen

Headquartered in Irving/Dallas, Texas, Alkegen is a global specialty materials manufacturer formed from the combination of Unifrax and Lydall, serving steel and aluminum production among its core industrial markets.

Products and technologies

• High-temperature industrial insulation and refractory materials
• Engineered fibrous materials and ceramic-fiber products
• Filtration media, including TriboStatiX™ electrostatically charged synthetic-fiber media
• Fire-protection materials for industrial applications

• Vertically integrated engineered fibrous materials, including ceramic fibers and aerogel composites, designed for thermal performance and energy efficiency
• TriboStatiX™ filtration medium, which provides high filtration efficiency and dust-holding capacity with low airflow resistance.

The company expanded global manufacturing capacity with new production lines and product launches, including AlkeGel in 2025 (specific aluminum-market details to be confirmed via company releases).

Alkegen operates more than 60 manufacturing facilities in over 12 countries, employing more than 9,000 people worldwide, with documented locations in Europe (including the United Kingdom and Germany), Asia (including China) and the Middle East.

This vertically integrated global footprint allows Alkegen to act as a US-based supplier of insulation, refractory and filtration materials to aluminum and other industrial sectors, supporting US aluminum producers with domestic supply of high-temperature and filtration products while also serving international customers from its worldwide manufacturing network.

SELEE Corporation

Based in Hendersonville, North Carolina, SELEE Corporation is the inventor and world's leading manufacturer of ceramic foam filters for molten metal filtration, serving aluminum foundries and casthouses in more than 50 countries.

Products and technologies

• Ceramic foam filters (CFF) for molten aluminum filtration
• Phosphate-free CS-X® ceramic foam filter formulation for improved environmental and worker-safety performance
• Filtration products for iron and steel foundries

• Ceramic foam filter technology for removal of non-metallic inclusions from molten aluminum before casting
• Precision-cut dimensional tolerances to support high-quality castings and aerospace-grade components

In 2024, SELEE announced a $7 million expansion in Henderson County, North Carolina, expected to create 110 new jobs. The company exports ceramic foam filters to foundries and casthouses in more than 50 countries, combining US and Chinese manufacturing with broad global distribution. As a US manufacturer exporting worldwide, SELEE provides domestic filtration supply for US casthouses and foundries while serving international customers through exports and its China manufacturing site. 

As a ripple effect of the Section 232 tariff structure, the import of primary aluminum has plunged year-on-year, marking a straight 30.8% slide from the import volume of 2.5 million tonnes in July 2022 to 1.73 million tonnes in July 2026. As a result, the import of downstream products has surged to feed the domestic requirements and the exports have consequently dipped, due to the insufficient feedstock to supply overseas after catering to the domestic facilities.

These factors, however, point to a subtler strategic angle adopted by the US whereby the nation has been dedicatedly taking measures to safeguard and boost its domestic aluminum industry and reduce import dependence, further reiterated by the $4 billion Oklahoma smelter project to Alcoa’s acquisition of South32’s upstream assets, to bringing the raw material home where the downstream industry, pillared by these aluminum downstream companies, continues to drive employment and take the US a step closer to build a self-sufficient aluminum industry.