About Olympic Steel

Olympic Steel, Inc. operates as a metals service center focused on the direct sale and value-added processing of carbon and coated sheet, plate and coil products; stainless steel sheet, plate, bar and coil; aluminum sheet, plate and coil; pipe, tube bar, valves and fittings, tin plate and metal-intensive end-use products. The company provides metals processing and distribution services for a wide range of customers. The company operates in three reportable segments: specialty metals flat products, carbon flat products, and tubular and pipe products. The company’s specialty metals flat products segment's focus is on the direct sale and distribution of processed aluminum and stainless flat-rolled sheet and coil products, flat bar products, prime tin mill products and fabricated parts. Through acquisitions, the company’s specialty metals flat products segment has expanded its geographical footprint and enhanced its product offerings in stainless steel and aluminum plate, sheet, angles, rounds, flat bar, tube and pipe and the manufacturing and distribution of stainless steel bollards and water treatment systems. The company’s carbon flat products segment's focus is on the direct sale and distribution of large volumes of processed carbon and coated flat-rolled sheet, coil and plate products and fabricated parts. Through acquisitions, the company’s carbon flat products segment has expanded its product offerings to include self-dumping metal hoppers and steel and stainless-steel dump inserts for pickup truck and service truck beds. Through the acquisition of Metal-Fab, Inc., or Metal-Fab, on January 3, 2023, the carbon flat products segment further expanded its product offerings to include venting, micro air and clean air products for residential, commercial and industrial applications. The company’s tubular and pipe products segment's focus is on the distribution of metal tubing, pipe, bar, valves and fittings and the fabrication of parts supplied to various industrial markets. Through the acquisition of Central Tube and Bar, or CTB, on October 2, 2023, the tubular and pipe products segment further expanded its geographic footprint and extended its value-added contract manufacturing capabilities. The company also perform toll processing of customer-owned metals. The company sells certain products internationally, primarily in Canada and Mexico. The company services certain customers with carbon and specialty metals flat products and tubular and pipe products through cross-stocking of products in certain facilities. The company offers business solutions to its customers through value-added and value-engineered services. The company’s sales force makes direct daily sales calls to customers throughout the continental United States, and parts of Canada and Mexico. Business Strategy Certain elements of the company’s strategy are investments and acquisitions; disposition of assets; and sales and marketing. Investing in processing automation solutions is an important component in realizing the company’s profitable growth strategy. Products, Processing Services and Quality Standards The company carries a wide selection of metals products and grades, ranging from commercial quality to ultra-high strength steel and specialty metals, including: Stainless steel and aluminum coil and sheet products, angles, rounds and flat bar; Alloy, heat treated and abrasion resistant coil, sheet and plate; Tin mill products, including electrolytic tinplate, electrolytic chromium coated steel and black plate; Coated metals, including galvanized, galvannealed, electro galvanized, advanced high strength steels, aluminized, and automotive grades of steel; Cold rolled carbon, including commercial quality, advanced high strength steel, drawing steel and automotive grades, cold rolled steel coil and sheet products; Hot rolled carbon, including hot rolled coil, sheet and plate steel products, including pickled and oiled, automotive grades, advanced high strength steels, and high strength low alloys; and Tube, pipe & bar products, including round, square, and rectangular mechanical and structural tubing; hydraulic and stainless tubing; boiler tubing; carbon, stainless, and aluminum pipe; and valves and fittings. With the acquisitions of EZ Dumper and McCullough, the company manufactures hydraulic dump inserts and self-dumping hoppers. With the acquisition of Shaw, the company manufactures and distributes stainless steel bollards and water treatment systems. With the acquisition of Metal-Fab, the company manufactures venting, micro air and clean air products for residential, commercial and industrial applications. The company attempts to maximize yield and equipment efficiency through the use of computer software and by combining customer orders for processing each coil, plate, tube or pipe to the fullest extent practicable. The company’s traditional service center and higher value-added processes include: Cut-to-length - cutting metal along the width of the coil, or to desired lengths; Slitting - cutting metal to specified widths along the length of the coil; Shearing - the process of cutting sheet metal; Blanking - cutting metal into specific shapes with close tolerances; Tempering - cold rolling process that improves the uniformity of the thickness and flatness of the metals; Stretcher-leveling - stretching process that improves the uniformity of the thickness and flatness of the metals; Plate and laser processing - cutting metal into specific shapes and sizes via laser, plasma and flame cutting; Forming and machining - bending, drilling, milling, tapping, boring and sawing metal; Tube processing - tube bending and end finishing; Finishing - shot blasting, grinding, edging, threading and grooving, beveling and polishing; Fabrication - machining, welding, assembly, painting and kitting of component parts; and Value added services, including saw cutting, laser cutting, beveling, threading and grooving. The flat products segment is separated into two reportable segments; specialty metals flat products and carbon flat products. The flat products segments’ assets and resources are shared by the specialty metals and carbon flat products segments and both segments’ products are, in some instances, stored in shared facilities and processed on shared equipment. The company’s quality assurance system, led by certified specialists and engineers, establishes controls and procedures covering all aspects of the company’s products from the time the material is ordered through receipt, processing and shipment to the customer. These controls and procedures encompass periodic supplier and customer audits, workshops with customers, inspection equipment and criteria, preventative actions, material traceability and certification. The company has quality labs for tensile testing at several of its facilities, including at the company’s facilities in Cleveland, Ohio, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Buford, Georgia and Bettendorf, Iowa and an Underwriters Laboratory (UL) for electrical products testing at the company’s facility in Wichita, Kansas. In addition, 31 of the company’s facilities have earned International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 9001:2015 certifications. The company’s Romeoville, Illinois and Locust, North Carolina facilities have earned the American Society of Mechanical Engineers S Certification; and the company’s Locust, North Carolina facility has earned the National Board of Boiler & Pressure Vessel Inspectors R and U Certifications. The company’s office building in Winder, Georgia has received the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. Customers and Distribution The company serves customers in metals consuming industries, including manufacturers and fabricators of transportation and material handling lift equipment, construction, mining and farm equipment, storage tanks, environmental and energy generation equipment, automobiles, food service and electrical equipment, as well as general and plate fabricators and metals service centers. While the company ships products throughout the United States, most of the company’s customers are located in the midwestern, eastern and southern regions of the United States. The company transports its products directly to customers via the company’s owned truck fleet and dedicated carrier fleet, which further supports the just-in-time delivery requirements of the company’s customers, and third-party trucking firms. The company processes its metals to specific customer orders, as well as for stocking programs. Many of the company’s larger customers commit to purchase on a regular basis at agreed upon or indexed prices for periods ranging from three to twelve months. Service Marks, Trade Names and Patents The company conducts its business under the name ‘Olympic Steel’. A provision of federal law grants exclusive rights to the word ‘Olympic’ to the U.S. Olympic Committee. The U.S. Supreme Court has recognized, however, that certain users may continue to use the word based on long-term and continuous use. The company has used the name Olympic Steel since 1954, but are prevented from registering the name ‘Olympic’ and from being qualified to do business as a foreign corporation under that name in certain states. In such states, the company has registered under different names, including ‘Oly Steel’ and ‘Olympia Steel’. The company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Olympic Steel Iowa, Inc., does business in certain states under the name ‘Oly Steel Iowa, Inc.’ The company’s wholly owned subsidiary, IS Acquisition, Inc., does business under the name ‘Integrity Stainless’. The company’s CTI operation conducts business under the name ‘CTI Power’. The company’s operation in Monterrey, Mexico operates under the name ‘Metales de Olympic S. de R.L. de C.V.’ The company’s wholly owned subsidiary, B Metals, Inc., does business under the name ‘Berlin Metals’. The company’s wholly owned subsidiary, MCI, Inc., does business under the name ‘McCullough Industries’ and the company conducts business under the name ‘EZ Dumper’ for certain of the company’s products. The company’s wholly owned subsidiary, ACT Acquisition, Inc., does business under the name ‘Action Stainless & Alloys’. The company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, SHAQ, Inc., does business under the name ‘Shaw Stainless & Alloys’. The registered trademarks ‘DYNAGUARD’, ‘DG’, ‘MF’, ‘METAL-FAB’, ‘METAL-FAB INC.’, ‘TEMP/GUARD’, ‘MICRO AIR’, ‘CORR/GUARD’, ‘SURELOCK’, ‘ROTO-PULSE’, ‘MISTMAX’ and ‘FORCE’ were acquired in conjunction with the acquisition of Metal-Fab. The company holds a trademark for its stainless steel sheet and plate product ‘OLY-FLATBRITE’, which has a unique combination of surface finish and flatness and for the company’s ‘WRIGHT’ self-dumping metal hoppers produced by McCullough. The registered trademark ‘ACTION STAINLESS’ was acquired in conjunction with the asset acquisition of Action Stainless. The ‘EZ DUMPER’ tradename was acquired by the company in conjunction with the acquisition of certain assets related to the manufacturing of the EZ Dumper hydraulic dump inserts. The registered tradenames ‘SHAW STAINLESS’ and ‘SHAW STAINLESS & ALLOY’ were acquired by the company in conjunction with the asset acquisition of Shaw Stainless. The company holds a patent for a certain welding fume collector, the apparatus and associated methodology, used during the process of welding which was acquired in conjunction with the acquisition of Metal-Fab. The company also holds patents for certain bollard coverings and methods of manufacturing and use thereof which were acquired in conjunction with the asset acquisition of Shaw Stainless. Government Regulation The company’s operations are governed by many laws and regulations, including those relating to workplace safety and worker health, principally the Occupational Safety and Health Act and regulations thereunder. History Olympic Steel, Inc., an Ohio corporation, was founded in 1954. The company was incorporated in 1978.