Trade Talk

tradetalk

ESAB completes brand transition

ESAB Welding & Cutting Products, Annapolis Junction, Maryland, finalized the transition to the Exaton brand name for all welding filler metals, which were part of its 2018 acquisition of Sandvik Welding Consumables. For stainless consumables, the Sandvik name has been replaced with the Exaton followed by the AWS/ASME classification of the product. For example, Sandvik 317L is now Exaton 317L. Its nickel-based consumables, previously sold under the Sandvik and Sanicro names, are renamed, too—for example, Sandvik NiCrMo-3 is now Exaton NiCrMo-3.

Logistics firm buys Great Lakes fleet

Rand Logistics Inc., New Jersey City, New Jersey, has agreed to acquire American Steamship Co. (ASC) from GATX Corp. An affiliate of American Industrial Partners, Rand provides dry bulk shipping services throughout the Great Lakes region. ASC operates the largest fleet of U.S.-flagged vessels on the Great Lakes, providing waterborne transportation of over 27 million tons annually of dry bulk commodities such as iron ore, coal and limestone on vessels ranging in length from 634 to over 1,000 feet. The combination of Rand and ASC will create the largest and most diverse fleet on the Great Lakes, serving different and highly complementary markets with multiple self-unloading vessel classes, according to Rand.

Omax adds distributors

Omax Corp., Kent, Washington, announced Landmark Solutions as Southern California distributor and Capital Machine Technologies will be representing Omax waterjets in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, and Florida. Landmark Solutions and Capital Machine will sell the Omax, Maxiem, GlobalMax and ProtoMax equipment lines.

Parker Steel founder passes away

Parker Steel founder Leo Goldner, 96, died Feb. 1 in Aventura, Florida. Goldner started Parker Steel Co. in 1955 and retired about 35 years later. His son, Paul Goldner, later renamed the firm as Parker Steel International. Leo Gardner began his career with Baron Steel Co., where brother-in-law Jerry Baron was president. He and Sidney Baron, also a brother in law, started Tyler Steel. Goldner also served as Midwest regional president of the National Association of Steel Distributors.

Metal Construction Association Wins Awards

PPG earns MCA awards

PPG, Pittsburgh, won two 2019 Chairman’s Awards from the Metal Construction Association during MCA’s 2020 winter meeting. In the Municipal category, PPG was recognized for its contributions to the Calgary Central Library in Alberta, Canada, which features PPG Duranar coatings on window frames and other extruded components. In the Institutional category, PPG was cited for supplying PPG Duranar coatings for the Menil Drawing Institute in Houston, part of a larger art museum complex.

Tube producer widens range of sizes, shapes

Hannibal Industries, Los Angeles, has increased its sales staff by 50 percent and added a dozen new sizes of carbon tube products, including round, square and rectangular shapes. The company plans to expand its product line further with additional new sizes in 2020.

Manufacturer selects equipment supplier

L&R Industries Inc. has selected Thermatool, East Haven, Connecticut, to install a new mill in its mechanical steel tube division in Mountain Grove, Missouri. Thermatool last year installed a 300 kW CFI high-frequency welder and an Alpha Mach 2 high-speed flying shear cutoff, including a non-contact laser velocimeter, at L&R. L&R reports experiencing such accurate product cut lengths that no second or third handling of the final product has been required. Tube produced on the equipment is ready to ship.

Tubing processor/distributor plans expansion

Samuel Associated Tube Group plans to invest $29 million to build a 284,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Birmingham, Alabama. “This new facility will give us the opportunity to serve and meet the needs of our growing customer base” in the region, says Vice President and General Manager Kristen Hudak. The new facility is expected to be fully operational before the end of 2020. The company will be hiring at the new plant.

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