Fondmetal's history began in 1970 at Palosco, a small community between Bergamo and Brescia. The firm started as an aluminium foundry working for third parties and continued a family tradition. Already in 1908, Stefano Rumi's grand-grandfather had an iron foundry (Stefano Rumi, son of Gabriele the founder of Fondmetal, is the present owner of the company).

To begin with, Fondmetal concerned itself with the production of dissimilar pieces, but as time went on, the firm specialized more and more in the manufacture of parts for the car industry in response to customer demand and Mr Rumi's passion for cars and racing. At Palosco they made induction manifolds, water conduits, clutch bellhousing and oil sumps. In this way, Fondmetal ended up manufacturing important parts such as cylinder heads and engine blocks for Maserati Biturbo. The prestigious Modenese firm was, along with Fiat, Iveco, OM, Magneti Marelli and Same, among the most important customers during the 1970's.