What Peterson Spring makes

Peterson Spring is a spring manufacturer that designs and builds compression, extension, and torsion springs alongside snap-rings and retaining rings, wire forms, clips, hose clamps, stampings, and a range of sub-assemblies. The company positions engine valve springs as a signature line, describing itself as a major supplier of valve springs to OEM, Tier 1, and aftermarket camshaft manufacturers, plus springs for fuel injectors, valvetrain latch mechanisms, torque converters, and clutch assemblies. Its PACALOY branded valve springs are marketed to professional motorsport, and its PAC-LIFE die springs are sold as a stocked lineup in standard inch, ISO inch, and ISO metric series for die-stamping and injection-molding tools.

The company serves nine market segments it names on its own site: aerospace and defense, agriculture, automotive, construction, consumer products, medical and healthcare, recreational vehicles, specialty products, and general industrial work. Peterson describes advanced processing for its engine-powertrain springs, including gas nitriding, surface enhancement, and controlled heat treatment to minimize load loss in service, supported by two dedicated laboratories, one metallurgical and one for performance testing. A Specialty Products division handles low-volume and no-minimum orders. The breadth of the catalog, from lawnmower springs to military applications, reflects a diversified spring and wire-form house rather than a single-program supplier.

Ownership and history

Peterson Spring traces to 1914, when August Christian Peterson, a Norwegian immigrant blacksmith who had risen through Midwest spring plants, moved his family to Detroit and formed a company to supply the railroad and early automobile industries. He built the business with his son Alfred, and the Peterson family ran it across generations. The company later expanded overseas through acquisitions and joint ventures in the 1960s and 1970s, split into two halves in 1978 with one renamed Peterson American Corporation, then reunited the family of companies under the Peterson American umbrella in 1991. For most of its history the company described itself as the largest privately held spring manufacturer in North America and a founding member of the Spring Manufacturers Institute.

Ownership changed in 2023. Business M&A records show Peterson American Corporation was acquired by First Brands Group, an automotive-parts group, on September 1, 2023. That timing matches the departure of the company's prior chief executive from Peterson Spring in the same month. First Brands Group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas on September 28, 2025, a case widely reported by Reuters and other outlets, with the parent securing debtor-in-possession financing to continue operations. Buyers evaluating Peterson Spring should treat the parent's restructuring as an active situation and confirm current ownership and account status directly. The operating company continues to run its plants; a company fact sheet describes 12 to 13 worldwide locations across the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Europe.

Locations

Peterson Spring lists multiple U.S. plants plus Canadian and Mexican operations on its own locations page. Named sites include Three Rivers North (16805 Heimbach Road, Three Rivers, Michigan), a Three Rivers South packaging and distribution facility, an Athens, Georgia plant, a Holland, Ohio (Maumee) plant, a Kingsville, Ontario plant in Canada, and a Querétaro plant in Mexico. The company also references Peterson Spring Europe operations. The Querétaro plant is the site the company specifically flags as certified to both ISO 14001:2015 and IATF 16949:2016.

Certifications and quality

Peterson Spring describes its plants as TS, ISO, and QS certified and points to engineering, design, and laboratory capability as core to its quality posture. Its Querétaro, Mexico plant is stated to be certified to ISO 14001:2015 and IATF 16949:2016, the automotive quality-management standard. The company operates a metallurgical laboratory for raw-material qualification and a performance laboratory for spring testing, using rotating-bending fatigue evaluation and tensile-yield measurement of wire stock. Certification scope beyond the Querétaro plant is stated in general terms on the company site rather than with per-plant certificate dates, so buyers should request current certificates for the specific plant that would run their parts.

Known customers

Peterson Spring does not publish a named customer list, which is normal for a spring and wire-form supplier serving OEM and Tier 1 programs under confidentiality. It describes itself as a major valve-spring supplier to OEM, Tier 1, and aftermarket camshaft manufacturers, and its PACALOY valve springs are marketed within professional motorsport. No individual customer program is documented in public filings or major-outlet reporting to the standard required here, so no customer table is published. The customs record below describes Peterson's own supply base, not its customers.

Sourcing evidence

Peterson American appears in U.S. customs bill-of-lading records with 53 import shipments on record, the most recent dated April 26, 2026. The named foreign suppliers fit a spring maker's input profile precisely: Suzuki Garphyttan, a specialist in oil-tempered and valve-spring wire, and KTS Wire, alongside intra-company shipments from Peterson Spring Europe. That pattern, high-grade spring wire coming in rather than finished assemblies, is the signature of a domestic manufacturer importing raw material for U.S. production, consistent with active plants and a continuing import relationship into 2026.

Coverage caveats apply. These are U.S. ocean-freight records only; air, truck, and rail movements, including most cross-border flows with the Canadian and Mexican plants, do not appear. Some records name freight intermediaries rather than manufacturers, and product categories come from declared manifest codes, which are noisy. Absence of a record is not evidence of absence. Buyers weighing nearshoring and tariff exposure should note that Peterson runs plants in all three USMCA countries.

Frequently asked questions

What does Peterson Spring make?

Peterson Spring manufactures compression, extension, and torsion springs, engine valve springs, PAC-LIFE die springs, snap-rings and retaining rings, wire forms, clips and hose clamps, stampings, and sub-assemblies. Engine valve springs, including its PACALOY racing line, are a signature product. It serves aerospace and defense, automotive, agriculture, medical, recreational-vehicle, and general industrial markets.

Who owns Peterson Spring?

Peterson Spring was founded by the Peterson family in 1914 and operated as the family-owned Peterson American Corporation for over a century. Business M&A records show Peterson American was acquired by First Brands Group on September 1, 2023. First Brands Group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on September 28, 2025, so current ownership and account status should be confirmed directly with the company.

Where is Peterson Spring headquartered?

Peterson Spring's operations are centered in Michigan, with a principal plant at 16805 Heimbach Road, Three Rivers, Michigan. The company lists additional U.S. plants in Athens, Georgia and Holland, Ohio, a Canadian plant in Kingsville, Ontario, and a Mexican plant in Querétaro, plus European operations, describing 12 to 13 worldwide locations.

What certifications does Peterson Spring hold?

Peterson Spring describes its plants as TS, ISO, and QS certified. Its Querétaro, Mexico plant is stated to be certified to ISO 14001:2015 and IATF 16949:2016, the automotive quality-management standard. Buyers should request the current certificate for the specific plant that would produce their parts.

Is Peterson Spring a good source for engine valve springs?

Peterson Spring markets itself as a major valve-spring supplier to OEM, Tier 1, and aftermarket camshaft manufacturers, using gas nitriding, surface enhancement, and controlled heat treatment, with two dedicated laboratories for material qualification and performance testing. Its PACALOY line is marketed within professional motorsport. As with any supplier under a parent restructuring, confirm current lead times and account status directly.

Last verified September 28, 2026. Is this your company? Request a correction.