Gerdau Ameristeel announced last month a multi-million dollar modernization effort that will upgrade equipment and improve productivity and efficiency of its Knoxville steel mill.
Gerdau Ameristeel is a steel mill that recycles scrap metal, mostly from automobiles, and a reinforcing steel plant that supplies fabricated steel for construction projects including roads, bridges, sewers and dams.
The company had originally thought about moving elsewhere but through combined efforts of numerous partners, the plant will stay in Knoxville and build a new $7 million, 68,000 square foot warehouse facility.
In an era when steel jobs are going overseas, we need to do whatever we can to ensure they stay not only in the United States, but in Knoxville, said Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam. Two-thirds of job growth comes from existing industry and we need to foster the relationships we have here to continue that growth.
| Representatives from Gerdau Ameristeel, City of Knoxville, KUB, State of Tennessee, TVA and the Partnership attended a luncheon to celebrate the modernization project. |
The Knoxville Utilities Board will build an electric substation and power line so the steel company won¹t have to share electricity with the residents and businesses around them. This will allow the company to boost production by 10 percent and cut down on interruptions or flickering to their neighbors due to electricity power drain. KUB, the state of Tennessee through the Fast Tract Infrastructure Funds, Tennessee Valley Authority and Gerdau Ameristeel are sharing the cost of building the substation.
"These are high paying manufacturing jobs and we value them, said Haslam. We cannot sustain the economy with only retail and communication companies. Manufacturing is the heart of the American industry and we are glad that Gerdau Ameristeel chose to stay in Knoxville. Could we succeed somewhere else? asked Michael Mueller, vice president/U.S. Mill Operation of Gerdau Ameristeel. The answer is yes, but we have a good workforce here and we are not about to abandon that. We could leave and get incentives somewhere else, but it really comes down to the great workforce and community that we have found in Knoxville.
Gerdau Ameristeel employs 300 people at their Knoxville facility located on Tennessee Avenue in the Empowerment Zone. It is one of the inner-citys largest employers and one of KUB¹s largest customers. Gerdau Ameristeel is one of Knoxville¹s oldest industries, beginning operations in 1868 as Knoxville Iron Works.
