To enter the Brazilian market, Steel Improvement formed an agreement in principle with Cia Mechanica e Importadoro, S.A., a company which produced agricultural hand tools and fasteners, largely by forging processes, in a large plant in Jundiai, a small town about 30 miles from Sao Paulo. Its president, Dr. Alexandre R. S. de Vasconcellos, provided skilled business know-how. The Brazilian National Development Bank provided some of the required financing, and a large American company, The American Brakeshoe Company, provided the balance, plus additional forging machinery to complete the equipment package. SIFCO do Brasil began operations in 1959 and grew rapidly to become the largest producer of forgings in the Southern Hemisphere and a significant exporter to several continents.