| May 2006 |  |
| Service Center News | |
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The
purchase price is approximately $49 million, which includes the
assumption of $19 million of liabilities. Steel Technologies expects
to finance the transaction with its existing credit facility. Kasle
Steel’s wholly owned operations include Kasle Steel Auto Blankers
Inc. in Flint, Mich., and Kasle Steel of Canada Ltd. in Windsor,
Ontario. Its three joint venture operations consist of a 50 percent
interest in RSDC of Michigan L.L.C. in Holt, Mich., which is a joint
venture with Marubeni-Itochu Steel America Inc.; a 50 percent interest
in Kasle Metal Processing LLC in Jeffer-sonville, Ind., which is
a joint venture with Automatic Feed Co.; and a 49 percent interest
in Delaco Kasle Processing in Woodhaven, Mich., a joint venture
with Delaco Steel Corp. “Kasle
Steel and its joint ventures have a proud history and excellent
reputation as world-class suppliers servicing the automotive industry,”
says Bradford T. Ray, chairman and CEO of Steel Technologies. “This
acquisition will expand Steel Technologies’ blanking capabilities
considerably and will strengthen our position with key automotive
customers.” Steel
Technologies—which was ranked No. 17 on MCN’s most recent
Service Center Top 50 with $1 billion in anticipated 2005 revenues—expected
to close the acquisition in early May. Encore
Group Buys Fox Metals & Alloys The
companies signed a letter of intent in April for Vancouver, British
Columbia-based Encore Group to purchase Fox’s specialty metal
service center business. “Encore
has been looking to acquire a suitable specialty metal service center
business in the Houston area for some time, and we are very pleased
with this development. The Encore and Fox businesses are an excellent
fit and the business logic for acquisition is strong,” says
Don Dalgleish, Encore Group president and CEO. Fox
specializes in the processing and distribution of carbon, alloy
and stainless steel products in bar and plate in the Southwest.
Fox Metals & Alloys President Ron Kimball adds, “I am very
supportive of the proposed sale, as the Encore and Fox cultures,
key business objectives and product lines are closely aligned.”
Encore
has 18 service centers located across Canada and the Northwestern
U.S. It operates four divisions—Encore Metals, Encore Metals
Inc., Encore Coils and Team Tube. Acerex
is a steel processing facility in Monterrey, Mexico, focused on
short length and thin steel sheets in various widths. The
joint venture was formed in 1994 with Hylsa, S.A. de C.V., which
was recently acquired by Luxembourg-based Ternium. The ownership
change at Hylsa prompted the sale of the joint venture. Worthington
officials indicated that they remain interested in the Mexican steel
processing market. Moving
to the 35,000-square-foot leased space on the 7th and 9th floors
of the waterfront office building allows the company to consolidate
administrative offices, accommodate future growth and integrate
its “metal products with holes” into the headquarters’
interior design. The
new headquarters address is 2502 North Rocky Pointe Drive, Suite
950, Tampa, FL 33607-1421. The
phone number, 813-282-3828, remains the same. Marmon/Keystone
Opens Ricardo
Hernandez, general manager of the Gaudalupe service center, will
oversee operations at Mexico City. Victor Baez serves as regional
accounts manager. “This
new satellite branch will allow us to greatly expand our market
sector. We can serve the fluid power and fabrication markets with
an inventory of chrome bar, honed cylinder tubing, DOM, carbon and
stainless steel and rectangular tubing,” says J.T. Spatafore,
Marmon/Keystone executive vice president. Friedman,
a pipe manufacturing, steel and pipe distribution and steel processing
company based in Houston, purchased 47 acres in Morgan County, Ala.,
near Decatur, to begin construction on its new facility. It has
earmarked up to $16 million for processing equipment at the new
facility. Initially,
the company expects to operate a hot-rolled steel temper mill and
a hot-rolled steel cut-to-length and leveling line. Friedman
will also make improvements to its pipe manufacturing operations
in Lone Star. Arcelor,
Mitsui to Open Luxembourg-based
Arcelor will own 65 percent of the new company, AMSA Steel Service
Centre Pty Ltd. UK-based Mitsui will own the other 35 percent. The
steel service center will be located in the Durban area and is expected
to start operations in the second quarter of 2007. It will process
120,000 tons of slit products, rectangular and shaped blanks per
year. AMSA will provide storage and services such as just-in-time
delivery to its automotive customers. Brady
Takes Over Elected
to a one-year term, Brady was joined by other newly elected officers:
Vice President Dan Erck, Cambridge-Lee Industries Inc., Reading,
Pa.; Treasurer Robert Lewis, AJ Oster West Inc., Yorba Linda, Calif.;
and Secretary Joseph Yereb, Guardian Metal Sales, Morton Grove,
Ill. Elected
to three-year terms as CBSA directors were: Keith Kessler, marketing
manager-brass and copper, Ryerson Inc., Chicago; Frank G. Kevane,
CEO, Copper and Brass Sales, Southfield, Mich; and James Barker,
president, Sequoia Brass & Copper Co. Inc., Hayward, Calif. Joseph
Walton, president of Williams Metals & Welding Alloys, Wayne,
Pa., was named to the board for a single year, to fill an unexpired
term. Dick Farmer, co-president of Farmer’s Copper Ltd., Galveston,
Texas, was elected to the board for two years, also to fill an unexpired
term. Retained
as a voting director was Bruce V. Seeger, who just completed two
terms as the organization’s president. He is president of Seeger
Metals & Plastics Inc., Toledo, Ohio. Macsteel
Building New Facility in Tucson The facility will process and distribute an array of steel and nonferrous products to customers in the South-eastern U.S. and Mexico. The facility will be located in the Century Park Research Center in Tucson. “We
are seeing steady growth in our business in the Western U.S. Tucson
is a strategic hub for that business in the Southwest and Mexico,
and is a perfect fit with our current locations,” says President
and CEO Michael Hoffman. Briefs Bushwick
Metals Inc., Bridgeport, Conn., agreed to a new contract with members
of Local 2066 of the International Brotherhood of Electricians at
its South Plainfield, N.J., facility. Bushwick Metals, a distributor
of carbon and steel structurals, plate and sheet, bars, tubular
steel and specialty products, is an affiliate of Butler, Pa.-based
Marmon/Keystone. Ferguson
Metals, Hamilton, Ohio, was honored as an “Achievement of Excellence”
award recipient from the Ohio Partnership for Excellence. The award
was given based on the criteria of quality processes, leadership,
strategic planning, customer focus, information and analysis, workforce
development and overall achievement of results. Quality
Metals, St. Paul, Minn., has installed a 5/16-inch high-speed looping-type
cut-to-length line from Red Bud Industries, Red Bud, Ill. The 72-inch
line features a heavy-gauge grip feed system and variable rake shear.
Surdex Steel, South Dandenong, Australia, also has installed a high-speed
slitting line from Red Bud. The line, to be installed at Surdex’s
new Steel Park, features “hands free” threading, where
a loop traverse system automatically threads the strips from the
slitting head to tension stand. The
Channel Corp., Stamford, Conn., has added depot stock availability
from a new warehouse facility in Chicago. The Midwest depot will
stock 6061 plate and large-diameter rods. Carl R. Valenti will serve
as Midwest sales manager. The Channel Corp. is an independent distributor
of aluminum mill products. The new location is part of its nationwide
network of depots located in Philipsburg, N.J.; Baltimore, Md.;
Atlanta; and Los Angeles. Altmetals, Wixom, Mich., presented its annual service awards to four employees: David Romaniw, slitter operator; Sheri Hoover, customer service manager; Kurt Pardee, packaging and shipping; and Harold Murthum, slitter operator. People Durrett Sheppard Steel Co. Inc., Baltimore, Md., has promoted Tim Schauman to general manager, overseeing sales, purchasing and inventory control for the area covering northern Virginia to southern Pennsylvania and Delaware. Also, Bob Breeden was promoted to inside sales manager and Kyle Grube was hired as purchasing manager. |
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