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| '''Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel''' was a ] manufacturer based in ], ] |
'''Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel''' was a ] manufacturer based in ], ]. | ||
| ==History== | ==History== | ||
| Wheeling Steel Corporation was organized on June 21, 1920 as a successor to three prior steel companies.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Wheeling Steel Corp. is Major Producer|date=15 Jan. 1956|newspaper=Wheeling News-Register|via=}}</ref> The company consisted of factories for 30 miles, from Benwood, West Virginia north to Steubenville, Ohio. | |||
| In December 1968, Pittsburgh Steel Company was merged into Wheeling Steel Corporation to form Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corporation, or the Wheeling-Pitt. The company had six major manufacturing centers in Eastern ], the ] of ], and ]. | |||
| * '''Ackermann Works''' at Wheeling, which produced pressed and drawn steel stampings used in the automotive and appliance industries. | |||
| * '''Beech Bottom Works''' at ], which consisted of sheet mills for producing hot rolled electrical sheets used by electrical equipment manufacturers. It also had facilities for coating long terne sheets produced by the Yorkville Works. | |||
| * '''Benwood Works''' at ], which consisted of two pipe mills with slabs supplied from Steubenville Works. | |||
| * '''LaBelle Works''' at Wheeling, which manufactured cut nails. | |||
| * '''Martins Ferry Works''' at ], which produced galvanized sheets, galvanized roofing and accessories, corrugated culverts, and hand-dipped items. It featured two continuous galvanizing lines where coils of steel strips were processed, galvanized, and treated. It was sold under the SofTite brand. A second galvanizing line went into operation in November 1953 at a cost of $3 million. | |||
| * '''Steubenville Works''', which consisted of three integrated operations: | |||
| ** Steubenville North at ], which featured two blast furnaces, 11 open hearth furnaces, blooming mill, hot strip mill, and cold reduction mills. It produced hot rolled sheets and plates and cold rolled sheets and coils. | |||
| ** Steubenville South at ], which consisted of three blast furnaces, two Bessemer converters, blooming mill, and auxiliary equipment. It supplied hot metal for the open hearth furnaces at Steubenville North and Bessemer slabs for Benwood Works. | |||
| ** Steubenville East in ], which featured 314 coking ovens for Steubenville North and South. | |||
| * '''Steelcrete Works''', adjacent to Beech Bottom Works, manufactured expanded metal, metal lath, and accessories. It also produced Steelcrete bank vaults, reinforced mesh for buildings, stair treads, partitions, and miscellaneous items. | |||
| * '''Wheeling Works''' at Wheeling, which fabricated containers, stove pipe and furnace pipe, electric and gas dryers, roofing accessories, floor and roof decking, gasoline tanks for automobiles, and miscellaneous automobile parts. | |||
| * '''Yorkville Works''' at ], which consisted of the first cold reduced black plate for tinning. The first tandem mill of its kind was installed in 1928. The facility produced electrolytic and hot-dipped tinplate, black plate, and terneplate. It also had a metal decorating plant for coating and lithographing tin, terne, and black plate, and two electrolytic tin plate lines that produced tin plate at up to 1,000 feet per minute. | |||
| Wheeling Steel was acquired by the Pittsburgh Steel to form the Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corporation in December 1968. The merger added: | |||
| * '''Allenport Works''', a sheet steel plant in ]. | |||
| * '''Monessen Works''', a steel mill in ]. | |||
| ⚫ | Wheeling-Pittsburgh’s was slow to modernize its high-cost facilities and overcome downturns in the steelmaking industry in the 1980’s. A late attempt to use a pig-iron blast furnace and electric arc furnace in tandem failed when the electric arc furnace did not achieve its designed capacity. Esmark engaged in a proxy takeover for Wheeling-Pittsburgh in 2005 and took over the company in November 2007.<ref name="Severstal" /> Severstal acquired Esmark’s Wheeling-Pittsburgh holdings in August 2008 for $1.25 billion,<ref name="Severstal">.</ref> which was then acquired by RG Steel in 2011.<ref></ref> Mass layoffs by RG Steel began in June 2012 after the company declared bankruptcy.<ref> . accessed 2.12.2014</ref> The company sent notices to all 4000 RG Steel employees that they may be laid off, with layoffs beginning on June 4, 2012.<ref name="Chapter11">.</ref> | ||
| ⚫ | ===Bankruptcy liquidations=== | ||
| While the company operated only a limited number of plants, the corporation was able to turn out a high number of products due to efficiency. Each of Wheeling-Pittsburgh's six plants turned out a different type of product. | |||
| ⚫ | After Chapter 11 bankruptcy and RG Steel liquidation, the Yorkville, Ohio plant was sold back to Esmark, the Martins Ferry, Ohio plant was sold to a local businessman, and the Steubenville, Ohio plant was sold to the metal recycler Herman Strauss.<ref></ref> | ||
| *Raw steel, which can be manufactured in a variety of thicknesses, and may be rolled or coiled, was created in ], Ohio. | |||
| *], originally Pittsburgh Steel Company, in ], Pennsylvania. | |||
| *In ], Ohio, the company produced tin products, specifically coatings. | |||
| *Galvanized steel, marketed under the SofTite name, was produced at a ], Ohio plant. | |||
| *Located near the main headquarters in Wheeling was a plant that specialized in steel for bridge and highway construction. | |||
| *Sheet steel was produced in an ], Pennsylvania plant. | |||
| *The company gathered the ] that is required for steel production at a ], West Virginia plant. | |||
| == Further Reading == | |||
| ===Decline=== | |||
| * at Abandoned | |||
| Although,Wheeling-Pittsburgh had some strong facilities, e.g. a good hot strip mill, the overall configuration with multiple locations spread mostly along the Ohio River created inefficiencies. Wheeling-Pittsburgh principally made commodity grade flat rolled steel much of it simply sold as hot band, which did not permit much pricing power. Its location near metallurgical coal mines and its own coking capacity gave it a competitive advantage in coke, but ultimately this was more than offset by the high logistical cost of bringing in iron ore. Ultimately, the fate of Wheeling-Pittsburgh followed the boom/bust cycle of the American steel industry, with the busts becoming more pronounced. With its high fixed-cost blast furnace configuration and unionized work force, limited-pricing power, the downturns resulted in several bankruptcy filings. In addition to the structural problems faced by Wheeling-Pittsburgh, there were some disastrous decisions with regards to large capital projects that sealed its fate. A late attempt to use a hybrid steel making method - blast furnace and an untried electric arc furnace design didn't work when the new electric arc furnace didn't achieve its designed capacity. In hindsight - a merger of Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel and nearby Weirton Steel, which could never happen because of the different union/employee and ownership structures, would have improved the likelihood that a merged entity could have been competitive and survived in some form. The only significant surviving operations from both entities is the Coking facility from Wheeling-Pittsburgh in Follansbee West Virginia and the tin mill from Weirton Steel in Weirton West Virigina.. | |||
| ;Esmark | |||
| Esmark, Inc., engaged in a successful proxy takeover battle for Wheeling-Pitt in 2005 and formally took over the steelmaker in November 2007.<ref name="Severstal" /> Despite endless promises of job saving, delays in financial reporting, and any number of claimed mergers and acquisitions that never saw the light of day, the new owners nearly drove the company into bankruptcy until a bridge loan from ] of India provided a lifeline. | |||
| ;Severstal | |||
| In August 2008, Russian steelmaker Severstal acquired Esmark's Wheeling-Pitt steel holdings for $1.25 billion.<ref name="Severstal">.</ref> | |||
| ;RG Steel—Renco Group | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| ⚫ | ==Bankruptcy liquidations== | ||
| ⚫ | After Chapter 11 bankruptcy and RG Steel liquidation, the Yorkville, Ohio plant was sold back to Esmark, the Martins Ferry, Ohio plant was sold to a local businessman, and the Steubenville, Ohio plant was sold to the metal recycler Herman Strauss.<ref></ref> | ||
| ==Notes== | ==Notes== | ||
Revision as of 15:26, 1 December 2016
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (January 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
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 Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Building,in downtown Wheeling, West Virginia. | |
| Industry | Metals |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1920 |
| Successor | RG Steel, LLC (bankrupt entity) |
| Headquarters | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (1920-Aug. 22, 1986) Wheeling, West Virginia (Aug. 1986-2013) |
| Products | raw steel galvanized steel substrate steel coils bridge building sheet metal tin coke |
| Revenue | liquidated |
| Website | www.rg-steel.com |
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel was a steel manufacturer based in Wheeling, West Virginia.
History
Wheeling Steel Corporation was organized on June 21, 1920 as a successor to three prior steel companies. The company consisted of factories for 30 miles, from Benwood, West Virginia north to Steubenville, Ohio.
- Ackermann Works at Wheeling, which produced pressed and drawn steel stampings used in the automotive and appliance industries.
- Beech Bottom Works at Beech Bottom, West Virginia, which consisted of sheet mills for producing hot rolled electrical sheets used by electrical equipment manufacturers. It also had facilities for coating long terne sheets produced by the Yorkville Works.
- Benwood Works at Benwood, West Virginia, which consisted of two pipe mills with slabs supplied from Steubenville Works.
- LaBelle Works at Wheeling, which manufactured cut nails.
- Martins Ferry Works at Martins Ferry, Ohio, which produced galvanized sheets, galvanized roofing and accessories, corrugated culverts, and hand-dipped items. It featured two continuous galvanizing lines where coils of steel strips were processed, galvanized, and treated. It was sold under the SofTite brand. A second galvanizing line went into operation in November 1953 at a cost of $3 million.
- Steubenville Works, which consisted of three integrated operations:
- Steubenville North at Steubenville, Ohio, which featured two blast furnaces, 11 open hearth furnaces, blooming mill, hot strip mill, and cold reduction mills. It produced hot rolled sheets and plates and cold rolled sheets and coils.
- Steubenville South at Mingo Junction, Ohio, which consisted of three blast furnaces, two Bessemer converters, blooming mill, and auxiliary equipment. It supplied hot metal for the open hearth furnaces at Steubenville North and Bessemer slabs for Benwood Works.
- Steubenville East in Follansbee, West Virginia, which featured 314 coking ovens for Steubenville North and South.
- Steelcrete Works, adjacent to Beech Bottom Works, manufactured expanded metal, metal lath, and accessories. It also produced Steelcrete bank vaults, reinforced mesh for buildings, stair treads, partitions, and miscellaneous items.
- Wheeling Works at Wheeling, which fabricated containers, stove pipe and furnace pipe, electric and gas dryers, roofing accessories, floor and roof decking, gasoline tanks for automobiles, and miscellaneous automobile parts.
- Yorkville Works at Yorkville, Ohio, which consisted of the first cold reduced black plate for tinning. The first tandem mill of its kind was installed in 1928. The facility produced electrolytic and hot-dipped tinplate, black plate, and terneplate. It also had a metal decorating plant for coating and lithographing tin, terne, and black plate, and two electrolytic tin plate lines that produced tin plate at up to 1,000 feet per minute.
Wheeling Steel was acquired by the Pittsburgh Steel to form the Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corporation in December 1968. The merger added:
- Allenport Works, a sheet steel plant in Allenport, Pennsylvania.
- Monessen Works, a steel mill in Monessen, Pennsylvania.
Wheeling-Pittsburgh’s was slow to modernize its high-cost facilities and overcome downturns in the steelmaking industry in the 1980’s. A late attempt to use a pig-iron blast furnace and electric arc furnace in tandem failed when the electric arc furnace did not achieve its designed capacity. Esmark engaged in a proxy takeover for Wheeling-Pittsburgh in 2005 and took over the company in November 2007. Severstal acquired Esmark’s Wheeling-Pittsburgh holdings in August 2008 for $1.25 billion, which was then acquired by RG Steel in 2011. Mass layoffs by RG Steel began in June 2012 after the company declared bankruptcy. The company sent notices to all 4000 RG Steel employees that they may be laid off, with layoffs beginning on June 4, 2012.
Bankruptcy liquidations
After Chapter 11 bankruptcy and RG Steel liquidation, the Yorkville, Ohio plant was sold back to Esmark, the Martins Ferry, Ohio plant was sold to a local businessman, and the Steubenville, Ohio plant was sold to the metal recycler Herman Strauss.
Further Reading
- Wheeling Steel's Benwood Works at Abandoned
Notes
- https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2519&dat=19860823&id=IKpdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=r10NAAAAIBAJ&pg=2384,3636533
- "Wheeling Steel Corp. is Major Producer". Wheeling News-Register. 15 Jan. 1956.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Russian Steelmaker Completes Esmark Acquisition." Associated Press. August 5, 2008.
- Severstal selling Wheeling-Pitt mills and other assets Pittsburgh Post-Gazette March 29, 2012
- RG Steel LLC website . accessed 2.12.2014
- "RG Steel Files Chapter Eleven." The Intellegencer Wheeling News Register May 31, 2012.
- The Saga Of Local Steel: Questions on RG Steel Liquidation Answered