Distributors/Service Centers
June 22, 2026
Written by Ethan Bernard
Leeco Steel has announced changes to two regional operational manager positions.
The Lisle, Ill.-based plate distributor and service center has promoted Jeremy Rhoads to regional operations manager – Texas. Additionally, the company announced the transition of Bill Mess to regional operations manager – North and Central US. Both were effective June 1.
Private equity firm SCF Partners announced it has acquired American Piping Products (APP), a pipe and tube distributor headquartered in Chesterfield, Mo.
SMU’s latest Flat-Rolled Steel Buyers Survey shows that in a tight US market marked by long lead times, low inventories, and rising prices, foreign products continue to gain the interest of domestic buyers.
The results of the latest SMU flat-rolled market survey are now available on our website to all premium members.
Service centers and manufacturers on the Sept. 15 HARDI Sheet Metal and Air Handling Council call described a tight, seller-driven market. Lead times are long, deliveries are late, inventories are thin, imports are down, and demand is strong, causing a shortage of galvanized material. SMU regularly joins the council’s meetings to discuss the galvanized sheet market. Participants — members of Heating, Air-Conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) — are wholesalers, service centers, distributors, and manufacturers who buy or sell galvanized steel.
US service centers’ flat-rolled steel supply declined in August, making the marginal gain the month prior an outlier year-to-date. Shipping days of supply slipped to 44.2 in August, according to SMU data.