Steel Mills

Nucor: Slate Retires, New VP Commercial and Executives Named

Written by David Schollaert

May 13, 2022

MaryEmily Slate, Nucor’s executive vice president of commercial, will retire on June 11 due to health-related issues. Dan Needham, Nucor’s executive vice president of bar, engineered bar and rebar fabrication products, has been named to succeed her. The transition is effective May 15, Nucor said.

NucorSlate joined Nucor in 2000 as district sales manager of Nucor Steel Arkansas. Over the years, she took on roles with increasing levels of responsibility. Slate was promoted to vice president of Nucor Steel Arkansas in 2015 and has served as executive vice president since 2019.

“For more than 21 years, MaryEmily’s dedication, exceptional leadership and commitment to excellence have contributed greatly to the growth and profitability of Nucor,” Nucor president and CEO Leon Topalian said. “More importantly, her passion for encouraging and developing teammates will be one of her lasting legacies.”

Needham began his career with Nucor in 2000 as controller at Nucor Steel Hertford County and shortly thereafter as controller of Nucor Steel Decatur and Nucor Steel Utah. Over the years, he took on roles with increasing levels of responsibility. Needham was promoted to vice president in 2016 and to executive vice president of bar, engineered bar and rebar fabrication products in February 2021. In his new role, Needham will focus on Nucor’s comprehensive enterprise commercial strategy, the company said.

The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker also announced the following executive-level changes:

John Hollatz, vice president and general manager of Nucor Steel Decatur, will replace Needham as Nucor’s executive vice president of bar, engineered bar and rebar fabrication products.

Hollatz joined Nucor in 1999 as design engineer at Vulcraft Indiana, later serving in several new roles with increased responsibility. He has served as vice president and general manager of Nucor Steel Decatur since 2016.

“I am very pleased to announce these executive management team changes,” Topalian said. “John is a talented leader who will be a strong addition to our executive team.”

Chad Utermark, Nucor’s executive vice president of fabricated construction products, has been appointed executive vice president of new markets and innovation, a newly created position. Utermark’s successor has not yet been named.

Utermark began his career as a utility operator at Nucor Steel Arkansas in 1992. Following several promotions, he was appointed general manager of Nucor Steel Texas and Nucor-Yamato Steel. Utermark was promoted to vice president in 2009 and to executive vice president in 2014.

“These changes, including the addition of Chad’s new role, will enable our team to focus on the significant strategic investments we have made and will continue to make,” Topalian added.

By David Schollaert, David@SteelMarketUpdated.com

David Schollaert

David Schollaert is deputy editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. He can be contacted at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.

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