Steel service center Willbanks Metals Inc. is expanding in Fort Worth, Texas. The company recently purchased property across the street from the current location of its headquarters and flat-rolled steel sheet and plate service center, allowing it to expand with a new Red Bud stretcher leveler and additional processing equipment. “We are thrilled to continue […]
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) has completed its acquisition of Mexican ferrous and nonferrous scrap recycler Roca Acero SA de CV. The Fort Wayne, Ind.-based EAF steelmaker did not disclose the purchase price but said the deal was paid for in cash. “Combined with our existing metals recycling facilities in Mexico, the addition of Roca significantly […]
Metals supplier Alro Steel has completed the acquisition of Access Metals, a service center and supplier located in Essex, Md. Effective Sept. 30, the purchase allows Alro to continue growing its customer base. Access Metals caters to small-purchase customers, both from the public and within the manufacturing, machining, and fabricating industries. “Alro shares my philosophy […]
The Jones Act is in the news again. The Jones Act requires that all trade within the United States (including Puerto Rico) be carried on US-registered ships built in the United States and manned by crews composed of at least 90% American citizens or permanent residents. Last week, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas waived […]
The United Steelworkers (USW) union has rejected US Steel’s latest labor proposal as tensions boil over and the two sides seem nowhere near to reaching a new agreement. Union representatives called the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker’s latest proposal “a smack in the face” in a text sent to members on Sept. 29. Negotiations are now a month […]
The Hamilton, Ohio-based Matandy steel and metal companies are now 100% employee owned. The prior owners of 35 years, Frank and Joanne Pfirman, recently converted the company to an employee stock option plan, surprising its 110 employees on Sept. 28 with the announcement. “I knew if we were to sell to a competitor or venture […]
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. and the United Steelworkers (USW) union announced they have agreed to a new labor deal after members ratified the terms of a new, four-year collective agreement, the company and union said on Friday, Sept. 30. The USW-represented employees at Cliffs mining and pelletizing locations in northern Minnesota and in the Upper Peninsula of […]
A new spiralweld pipe mill has officially opened its doors in Houston. The JDF/HDM mill, a partnership between Houston-based JD Fields and Turkish pipe piling manufacturer HDM Çelik Boru Sanayi ve Ticaret AŞ, has been rolling pipe successfully for two months now. An official ribbon cutting ceremony was held on Wednesday, Sept. 28, to celebrate […]
Worthington Industries announced it will be splitting off its steel business and creating two separate, publicly traded businesses. Worthington’s Steel Processing business segment will become the independent Worthington Steel, with an aim to be a processor with expanded offerings in electrical steel laminations and automotive lightweighting solutions. Worthington’s current chief operating officer, Geoff Gilmore, will serve as the […]
Worthington Industries reported sharply lower profits in its fiscal 2023 first quarter results ended Aug. 31, 2022, despite a boost in sales. The Columbus, Ohio-based manufacturer and service center said the drop resulted largely from inventory holding losses at its steel processing division, which negatively impacted results by an estimated $48.6 million. All told, Worthington […]
The US Department of Commerce has issued its final determinations in the trade case investigating the dumping of OCTG imports from Mexico, Argentina, and Russia, and the subsidization of OCTG from Russia and South Korea. The investigations include both welded and seamless OCTG. Antidumping Case In the final results of the case investigating Mexico, Commerce […]
Steel sheet processor Steel Technologies LLC is expanding its campus in Decatur, Ala., to produce steel blanks to be used in the automotive, agricultural, and consumer goods markets. The initial expansion plan has already secured a commitment for approximately 50,000 tons of coil and blank processing, according to a LinkedIn post from the company. A […]
Demand for galvanized sheet is strong or softening, depending on where you’re located, according to members of the Heating, Air-Conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) Sheet Metal/Air Handling Council. And with pricing bouncing along somewhat steadily in recent weeks, most members are not expecting any big swings in galvanized pricing in the coming months. In […]
Nucor Corp. announced Wednesday plans to build two new galvanizing lines, with specific details for one line to be constructed at the Nucor Steel Berkeley sheet mill in Huger, S.C. The $425 million investment will create more than 50 full-time jobs, with an expected start-up date of mid-2025. Nucor said this expansion will provide more […]
Canadian flat-rolled steelmaker Algoma Steel Inc. expects results for its fiscal 2023 second quarter to be down significantly compared to prior quarters because of operational challenges, declining shipments, and lower prices. In its latest earnings guidance, the Sault St. Marie, Ontario-based company said it expects fiscal ’23 Q2 adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and […]
Tensions continue to escalate between US Steel and the United Steelworkers (USW) union as the two sides remain far apart on reaching a new labor agreement. On Sept. 26, the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker went so far as to file an unfair labor practice complaint with the National Labor Relations Board against the USW. “We have continued […]
US Steel has decided to indefinitely idle the No. 3 blast furnace at its Mon Valley Works in western Pennsylvania following a roughly month-long maintenance outage. “We expect planned maintenance on BF 3 to be completed and the furnace to be available for use this week. However, the furnace will remain down until market conditions […]
Shipments of iron and steel, coke, and scrap metal on the St. Lawrence Seaway System were robust in the first eight months of this year, according to the latest figures released by the Great Lakes Seaway Partnership. Steel shipments on the Seaway were up 3.92% from the same period of 2021, reaching 1.282 million metric […]
Trump-era Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods continue to be challenged in court even today, more than four years after they took effect. It’s remarkable that the tariffs have survived two presidential administrations that otherwise have little in common. President Biden and former President Trump have sharp differences when it comes to tone and to […]
The United Steelworkers union and US Steel traded blows as bargaining talks on a new labor deal continued well past the Sept. 1 expiration of a prior agreement. The USW said in an update to its members on Sept. 22 that the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker had failed to invest in its union-represented facilities as promised. The union also […]
Altos Hornos de México (AHMSA) has restarted its electric arc furnace (EAF) in Monclova, Coahuila, which had been down since July due to a failure at its electrical substation. Work to repair the substation was slowed by difficulties in sourcing the right equipment, which in turn delayed the restart of the EAF, according to a […]
Lapham-Hickey Steel is continuing its growth by taking a controlling stake in Mexico’s lamination stamper and value-added services provider VC Laminations. VC Laminations, located in Queretaro, Mexico, is a family-owned business that produces a complete line of E&I and motor laminations to the electric and power generation markets. The manufacturer has 10 high-speed progressive stamping […]
US Steel Corp.’s month-long maintenance outage on the No. 3 blast furnace at Mon Valley Works near Pittsburgh is expected to be completed on Saturday, Sept. 24, a company spokeswoman confirmed to SMU. Once complete, the blast furnace is expected to remain idle for the next month or so in response to declining demand and […]
NLMK USA has planned a roughly month-long outage for upgrades to its electric-arc furnace (EAF) sheet mill in Portage, Ind. The work is scheduled for October and November and will be focused on enhancements to the plant’s melt shop and hot strip mill, a company spokesman said. NLMK USA in emails to customers specified the […]
Nucor Corp. is pursuing LEED v4 for Building and Design certification for its new plate mill in Brandenburg, Ky. With categories of sustainable performance and climate change, and third-party transparency and reporting requirements, the certification is even more rigorous than previous LEED rating systems, the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said in a press release. “Sustainability has […]
SSAB is expanding its decarbonization efforts. The Swedish steel company recently announced its partnership with equipment manufacturer Oshkosh Corp. Oshkosh will receive fossil-free steel from SSAB to manufacture environmentally-friendly vehicles. “We are very happy to welcome Oshkosh Corp. into our partner group to be the first in the US to prototype fossil-free steel in commercial and […]
ThyssenKrupp Material Services is investing $37 million to build a new aluminum and steel service center in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, to serve the automotive supply markets. Operations at the new location are scheduled to begin mid-2023. A Schuler blanking line to cut aluminum and high-strength steel blanks will be a focal point of the […]
To bring its results in line with a recent US Court of International Trade (CIT) decision, the US Department of Commerce is amending antidumping duties on imports of hot-rolled steel flat products from Australia. The move comes after Australia’s BlueScope Steel Ltd. was successful in challenging at the CIT Commerce’s final results of the first administrative review […]
The US Department of Commerce has released updated antidumping duty rates on certain pipe and tube imports after administrative reviews. It has also brought prior determinations in line with remand orders from the US Court of International Trade (CIT). OCTG Commerce set a 1.59% weighted-average dumping margin for the Interpipe group of companies in the preliminary results of […]
Antidumping and countervailing duty actions (also known as trade cases) have been a mainstay for protecting American industries from foreign competition. Many lawyers and economic consultants (I am among them) have made their living litigating these cases at Commerce Department, the US International Trade Commission, and the courts. More than 660 products are currently subject […]