Ranger Steel Opens Memphis Distribution Center

Houston-based Ranger Steel, which claims to be the largest independent steel plate distributor in the United States, has expanded into the southeastern U.S. with the opening of its newest distribution center in Memphis, Tenn. The facility is located on the Mississippi River at Kinder Morgan's 35-acre mid-river terminal, with convenient access to barge, rail and truck transportation.

In addition to leasing storage space, Ranger will contract Memphis operations and shipping services to Kinder Morgan, an experienced warehouse storage and logistics operator. Ranger's Memphis facility started receiving steel shipments on Aug. 1. The three grades of steel plate on the ground in Memphis are pressure vessel; high strength, low alloy; and regular carbon plate.

“We're continually moving steel closer to our customers,” says Ranger Steel President Ron Whitley. “Steel is facing a serious capacity shortage in both truck and rail transportation, and we believe this will only get worse as the economy improves and consumer demand increases. Maintaining a stock distribution center in Memphis, at the crossroads of the Southeast, will help us serve customers in this region faster, more efficiently and as cost-effectively as possible. Our steel supply in Memphis is backed by Ranger's vast inventory, which averages 45,000 tons of steel plate on any given day.”