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  #1  
Old Posted Nov 1, 2007, 12:56 AM
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Welcome Back, Stelco

It’s the end of an era as Stelco name disappears

October 31, 2007
BY NAOMI POWELL

Goodbye, Stelco. Hello, U.S. Steel Canada.

On its first day as Stelco’s new owner, U.S. Steel replaced the corporate name that’s been inextricably linked with Hamilton for decades.

By Wednesday afternoon, Stelco’s website and the glass front door of its Hamilton head office were already emblazoned with its new handle: U.S. Steel Canada.

The switch came as Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel closed its $1.1-billion purchase of Stelco and swiftly installed a new Hamilton management team, led by industry veteran Douglas R. Matthews.

“United States Steel Canada, United States Steel Serbia, United States Steel Slovakia (that’s) the way we name subsidiary companies within United States Steel,” Matthews said in an interview.

“Of course we wanted to respect the history and heritage of Stelco, the Steel Company of Canada. We thought it would be nice to merge the two names.”

For Terrie DeMelo, who watched a worker scrape the Stelco logo off the glass door of its headquarters yesterday, the change is bittersweet.

“How can you talk about Hamilton and not mention Stelco?” said the Hamilton native and former employee of the steelmaker.

“In the long run (the sale) is probably a good thing for the company. But the thing about it being a Canadian company just feels like it’s gone.”

The Steel Company of Canada was formed on June 8, 1910, through the incorporation of five individual screw, steel, bolt and wire manufacturers.

It officially changed its name to Stelco in 1980, partly to satisfy new French-language requirements.

The name Stelco, it was found, worked well in both French and English.

The Stelco moniker soon became synonymous with Canadian steelmaking.

By the time industrial giant U.S. Steel came calling this year however, Stelco and its workforce had been dragged through years of financial problems and a difficult restructuring.

Against that background, some workers found it hard to shed a tear for the retired name.

“I don’t care,” said Tony Liota, an industrial mechanic in Stelco’s cold mill.

“I’m probably better off with these guys as a worker than I was with Stelco because of the size of the organization. I’m now part of a worldwide company versus one little company that was trying to make a go of it.”

Matthews said most remaining Stelco signage will be replaced with the U.S. Steel Canada logo.
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  #2  
Old Posted Nov 1, 2007, 2:26 AM
raisethehammer raisethehammer is offline
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what a stupid name.
US Steel Canada??

Thanks for your takeover fellas, but this chap will always call it Stelco - Steel Company of Canada.
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  #3  
Old Posted Nov 1, 2007, 6:05 AM
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Eh, I don't care what it's called if they can make the place start earning money again.

What this guy said here:

“I’m probably better off with these guys as a worker than I was with Stelco because of the size of the organization. I’m now part of a worldwide company versus one little company that was trying to make a go of it.”

Is very true.
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  #4  
Old Posted Nov 1, 2007, 12:10 PM
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People will be calling it stelco for a long time to come.
Hopefully US Steel can make it profitable, like dofasco.
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  #5  
Old Posted Nov 1, 2007, 1:01 PM
raisethehammer raisethehammer is offline
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they've been making gobs of money.
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  #6  
Old Posted Nov 1, 2007, 2:53 PM
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I'm sure it was a different scene when the folks pulling the strings at Stelco and Dofasco also lived and shopped in Hamilton, and thus had a stake in the community.
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  #7  
Old Posted Oct 14, 2008, 9:07 PM
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U.S. Steel Canada plans Hamilton blast furnace shutdown

October 14, 2008
By Naomi Powell, The Hamilton Spectator

U.S. Steel Canada is planning to shut down its Hamilton blast furnace for up to eight weeks as the global market meltdown takes its toll on the steel sector.

A shutdown at the former Stelco would likely begin at the end of the month, says a source familiar with the plans.

The move comes as steelmakers across the globe face plunging demand from customers badly battered by the credit crisis.

Many large customers have been unable to borrow the money they need to buy steel. Others are struggling to contend with a slowing economy that has shrunk demand for everything from construction to appliances and cars.

Last month, ArcelorMittal Dofasco announced plans to scale back production in the second half of the year with CEO Juergen Schachler citing "tough economic times and unexpected weakness in the North American manufacturing sector."

Parent company ArcelorMittal has said it will slash production by 15 per cent across its global operations.

And last week, Russian steel firm OAO Severstal announced plans to slash its October production by 25 per cent at its Russian plant and 30 per cent at its operations in the United States and Italy.

Trevor Harris, spokesperson for U.S. Steel Canada, declined to comment on potential production cuts. He said operational changes would be discussed in the company’s quarterly earnings call, scheduled for Oct. 26.

“As we’ve said in the past, we will adjust production up and down to keep pace with customer orders,” Harris said.

It is unclear whether the cuts would result in layoffs. The former Stelco employs about 1,700 hourly workers at its Hamilton plant.

ArcelorMittal Dofasco has said it will cut back on overtime and reduce its casual employee base as it slows production.
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  #8  
Old Posted Oct 14, 2008, 9:18 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelTown View Post
U.S. Steel Canada plans Hamilton blast furnace shutdown

October 14, 2008
By Naomi Powell, The Hamilton Spectator

U.S. Steel Canada is planning to shut down its Hamilton blast furnace for up to eight weeks as the global market meltdown takes its toll on the steel sector.
Will they change the story after the 8 weeks is up and say we decided to shut the whole place down? I hope it doesn't come to that. Sure is a bleak future all around.
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  #9  
Old Posted Oct 14, 2008, 11:14 PM
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Will they change the story after the 8 weeks is up and say we decided to shut the whole place down? I hope it doesn't come to that. Sure is a bleak future all around.
That could be a possibility. When oil was $145 a barrel, it was actually cheaper to produce a ton of steel in NA then to ship it from China. With oil back down under $80, that advantage is now gone.

It's no secret that USS really wanted the Lake Erie works, it's the crown jewel of the industry.

More to come...
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  #10  
Old Posted Oct 14, 2008, 11:16 PM
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oil will go back up.
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  #11  
Old Posted Oct 14, 2008, 11:18 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelTown View Post
U.S. Steel Canada plans Hamilton blast furnace shutdown

It is unclear whether the cuts would result in layoffs. The former Stelco employs about 1,700 hourly workers at its Hamilton plant.

ArcelorMittal Dofasco has said it will cut back on overtime and reduce its casual employee base as it slows production.
Wow is that all that is left at Stelco (besides the salary dudes)? I thought there was more than that left there. Good luck to them. Hopefully the recent drop in the dollar will give them a hand. I bet Michigan wishes they had a currency they could drop 15% in a few weeks (although in no way am I advocating a general longterm policy of whoring out your currency).
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  #12  
Old Posted Oct 14, 2008, 11:25 PM
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Wow is that all that is left at Stelco (besides the salary dudes)? I thought there was more than that left there.
I was shocked at how low that was too. Wow that's unreal.

And yes there has been rumours for years now moving everthing to the lake Erie works.
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  #13  
Old Posted Oct 15, 2008, 12:21 AM
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Originally Posted by coalminecanary View Post
oil will go back up.
... haha! i totally believe this. a car dealer said as soon as oil came back down this week she started selling SUVs and trucks again. I swear, dogs are more intelligent than some people..
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  #14  
Old Posted Oct 15, 2008, 1:25 AM
Gurnett71 Gurnett71 is offline
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I was shocked at how low that was too. Wow that's unreal.

And yes there has been rumours for years now moving everthing to the lake Erie works.
Interesting. My grade 12 urban geography teacher bet us that Stelco would end up consolidating their operations at Lake Erie works within 20 years--and that was 20 years ago this year, I think! Hope he doesn't try and collect our wager with interest.
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  #15  
Old Posted Oct 24, 2008, 2:19 PM
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U.S. Steel idles Hamilton furnace
The Hamilton Spectator
(Oct 24, 2008)

U.S. Steel Canada has begun shutting down its Hamilton blast furnace due to the global financial crisis.

The company intends to halt primary steelmaking for six to eight weeks while continuing to make coke at full speed, sources say.

Layoffs at the steelmaker are possible but a "last resort." The company is in talks with union leaders to reschedule maintenance projects to keep employees on the job.

The tentative timeline for the shutdown could change depending on the economy.
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  #16  
Old Posted Oct 24, 2008, 2:30 PM
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A friend of mine who's a steamfitter heard they were going to stop making coke too--nearly total shutdown. Hopefully that's not true.
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  #17  
Old Posted Nov 7, 2008, 9:19 PM
markbarbera markbarbera is offline
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This adds to the mix:

Quote:
U.S. Steel faces three charges

November 07, 2008
Eric McGuinness
The Hamilton Spectator

Stelco Inc., now operating as U.S. Steel Canada Inc., is charged with releasing illegally high levels of toxic dioxins and furans into the air over Hamilton last year.

It's also charged with discharging water toxic enough to kill fish into the harbour at about the same time.

It faces one count of air pollution and two of water pollution laid by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment for Environmental Protection Act violations at the Hamilton Works.

One count alleges the sinter plant stack emitted illegal levels of dioxins and furans for about 10 days in late February and early March of 2007.

The other two allege cooling water discharged into Hamilton Harbour in February killed more fish than allowed in a standard test and the company failed to report the violation as soon as reasonably possible.

The water charges fall under Municipal-Industrial Strategy for Abatement regulations that require industries discharging persistent toxic substances into Ontario waterways to monitor themselves. They must demonstrate that their effluents are not toxic to rainbow trout and water fleas, used as indicator species for other aquatic life. Any incidents of non-compliance must be reported quickly to the ministry, first by phone, then by letter.

The ministry no longer issues news releases when it lays charges, but revealed its actions against the former Stelco plant in response to a Spectator request for information about heavy emissions from the coke oven battery Sept. 3.

It said the water charges were laid July 18 and the air charge on Aug. 28. The next court appearance on the air charge is Nov. 24. A pre-trial hearing on the water charges is scheduled for Jan. 28.

Jennifer Hall, the ministry's regional communications adviser, wrote in an e-mail: "As these matters are before the courts, it would be inappropriate to comment on them any further at this time."

Trevor Harris, spokesperson for U.S. Steel Canada, said: "It would be inappropriate for me to comment on matters that took place under the previous management."

Hamilton Works has the only iron sintering furnace in Canada. In 2006, Stelco said it was used to fuse 600,000 tonnes a year of fine, iron-rich, dust into fist-sized chunks that could be fed into the blast furnace, which produces molten iron used to make steel.

Lynda Lukasik of Environment Hamilton, who was on a panel that helped set Canada-wide standards for sinter plant emissions, said yesterday she believed the Hamilton plant had been shut down for more than a year.
Since USS doesn't have GreenShift to use as a scapegoat, perhaps they will use this as their excuse for closing up shop in Hamilton...
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  #18  
Old Posted Nov 7, 2008, 9:53 PM
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Those fines will be a slap on the wrist, like the $85,000 Dofasco got for safety violations.
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  #19  
Old Posted Nov 13, 2008, 2:10 AM
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Significant layoff announcements at USS Hamilton Works are imminent.
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  #20  
Old Posted Nov 13, 2008, 2:22 AM
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Significant layoff announcements at USS Hamilton Works are imminent.
I hate this recession and all these layoffs.
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