Supply Chain

• Feniger named vice president at Universal Metals Mar 20, 2009

  David Feniger has been named vice president of operations for coil sheet distributor Universal Metals LLC.

• Boyd Metals begins work on new warehouse Mar 20, 2009

  Boyd Metals Inc. has begun groundwork on a new $6-million warehouse in Little Rock, Ark.

• CN Railway inks ‘quiet zone’ accord with town in Illinois Mar 17, 2009

  Canadian National Railway Co. (CN Railway), Montreal, said Wednesday it has reached a voluntary mitigation agreement with Richton Park, Ill., southwest of Chicago, addressing its concerns over the company’s recent acquisition of Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway Co. (EJ&E).

• Compass buys Citation die cast operations Mar 16, 2009

  Compass Automotive Group Inc. has bought the aluminum die casting and machining operations of Citation Corp., it said Monday.

• Samuel Manu-Tech posts loss as sales rise Mar 05, 2009

  Toll processor and distributor Samuel Manu-Tech Inc. has posted a fourth-quarter net loss of Canadian $46.9 million ($36.7 million) in contrast to net income of nearly C$3.3 million in the same period last year as a weakening global economy and financial crisis slowed steel demand in most key markets.

• CN inks pact with another town along EJ&E railroad Mar 05, 2009

  Canadian National Railway Co. (CN Railway), Montreal, has come to an agreement with West Chicago, Ill., to address the town’s concerns with its acquisition of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway Co. (EJ&E).

• Canam eyes growth amid flat earnings Feb 27, 2009

  Metal construction products fabricator Canam Group Inc. is targeting growth despite currently dismal market conditions.

• Bombardier cuts may pinch metals Feb 10, 2009

  Bombardier Aerospace is feeling the impact of the global economic slowdown, with the higher than normal level of deferrals and cancellations for its business aircraft prompting it to reduce its Learjet and Challenger production rates this year, the Montreal-based company said.

• Railroad sees promise in coal shipments this year Jan 29, 2009

  This year promises opportunities for Norfolk Southern Corp., a railroad that derives about a third of its revenue from coal shipments, but it could be an uphill climb, according to Donald W. Seale, executive vice president and chief marketing officer.

• Citation’s lost foam casting business gets lift, buy done Jan 27, 2009

  Transportation and industrial parts maker Citation Corp., Novi, Mich., has completed its acquisition of Foseco-Morval Inc. in a bid to boost its lost foam casting business. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

• OESA urges Obama to allot funds to auto supply chain Jan 23, 2009

  The Original Equipment Suppliers Association (OESA) is pressing the Obama administration to use some of the $700 billion in financial rescue funds to speed money to the auto supply chain, where many companies are on the brink of collapse.

• Rio’s Canadian ore output up 1.2% in qtr. Jan 15, 2009

  Rio Tinto, Through its stake in Iron Ore Co. of Canada (IOC), saw Canadian production of iron ore pellets and concentrate increase to 2.28 million tonnes in the fourth quarter last year, up just 1.2 percent from about 2.24 million tonnes in the same 2007 period, the company said in a statement.

• General Aluminum to idle Ind. plant on auto slump Jan 13, 2009

  General Aluminum Manufacturing Co. will idle its Richmond, Ind., plant March 8.

• General Aluminum to idle Ind. plant on auto slump Jan 12, 2009

  General Aluminum Manufacturing Co. will idle its Richmond, Va., plant March 8.

• Timken wins India bearings pact Jan 09, 2009

  Timken Co., Canton, Ohio, will supply large-bore bearings for critical applications in cement-making equipment used by Indian cement producer Jaypee Group.

• Interlake asks court to ok payments Jan 09, 2009

  Interlake Material Handling Inc., a Naperville, Ill.-based manufacturer of storage racks and shelving used in a vast array of industries, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on and petitioned the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, to immediately approve payments to its top 30 “critical vendors,” primarily consisting of steel suppliers.

• Patriot opens service center in Maine, plans expansion Jan 08, 2009

  Patriot Metals LLC has opened a full-line steel service center in Portland, Maine, and plans to open two more service centers within the next six months, according to James Post, president and chief executive officer.

• Heartland ready to fill ‘hole’ in central Ohio: exec Jan 08, 2009

  Heartland Inc., which recently acquired 37 acres in Washington Court House, Ohio, expects to open a new structural steel service center as soon as May, according to Randy Frevert, president of the new venture.

• Olympic Steel installs new line Jan 08, 2009

  Olympic Steel Inc., Bedford Heights, Ohio, has installed a 0.375-inch-thick blanking line with a stretcher leveler at its Plymouth, Minn., facility.

• Tex-Tube backs off sales deal to sell own pipe Jan 08, 2009

  Tex-Tube Co., Houston, is terminating its sales agent agreement with Tubular Synergies Group, Dallas, effective Jan. 17, and opting instead to sell its own pipe.

• Heartland buys land to build steel service center in Ohio Jan 07, 2009

  Heartland Inc., Middlesboro, Ky., has acquired 37 acres in Washington Court House, Ohio, on which it plans to build a structural steel service center.

• DMI slates 20% work force cut; tower usage off Jan 06, 2009

  DMI Industries Inc., which manufactures heavy steel wind towers, has laid off nearly 190 employees—about 20 percent of the work force at its three facilities in West Fargo, N.D., Tulsa, Okla., and Fort Erie, Ontario—due to declining demand.

• Western Canadian Coal lends Cambrian $36 million Jan 02, 2009

  Western Canadian Coal Corp. said it would lend up to $36 million to Cambrian Investment Holdings Ltd. (CIH), a subsidiary of Cambrian Mining Plc.