Tracing its roots to Pittsburgh’s Star Fire Brick Company in 1865, HWI manufactures refractory products and engineered services that protect equipment in high-temperature industries. Now a member of the Calderys Group, the company operates 25 manufacturing sites and 20 distribution centers across its Americas footprint, with nearly 2,000 employees. HWI is particularly known in the iron and steel industry for inventing COMANCHE® ladle refractories and for its Advanced Technology and Research Center, described as the largest U.S. facility devoted to refractory development, quality assurance, and failure analysis.