Benefits study: U.S. steel industry is vital for economic competitiveness, national security
By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff -- Manufacturing Business Technology, 8/14/2007 9:34:00 AM
A new report out of Dublin-based Research and Markets, Analyzing the U.S. Steel Industry, cites the criticality of the steel industry to the U.S. economy.
Steel is the material of choice for many elements of construction, transportation, manufacturing, and a variety of consumer products. Traditionally valued for its strength, steel also has become the most recycled material, with two-thirds of U.S. steel now produced from scrap.
The U.S. steel industry is a more than $50 billion enterprise, and additional downstream processing pushes the value closer to $75 billion. The industry accounts for nearly 10 percent of the global raw steel market, providing more than 107 million net tons in 2003.
Large quantities of low-cost imports have challenged the industry in recent years, but restructuring, downsizing, and widespread implementation of new technologies have led to vastly improved labor productivity, energy efficiency, and yield.
As a result of industry consolidation, the number of steelmaking facilities has decreased significantly over the last few decades. As of 2005, around 85 companies were producing raw steel at almost 140 locations. The absolute number of integrated mills producing steel in basic oxygen furnaces has always been relatively small and is currently at around 20.
The highest geographic concentration of mills is in the Great Lakes region, including Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and New York. Approximately 80 percent of U.S. steelmaking capacity is in these states. The industry employs more than 100,000 people nationwide.
The U.S. steel industry is vital to both economic competitiveness and national security. Steel is the backbone of bridges, skyscrapers, railroads, automobiles, and appliances. More than 3,000 catalogue grades of steel are currently available, not including custom grades for specific users. Most grades of steel in use today—particularly high-strength steels that are lighter and more versatile—were not available 10 years ago.
Sections focusing on the value chain analysis of the industry, the steel crisis of 1998, a comparison of U.S., Japanese and South Korean steel companies, and the importance of the U.S. steel industry to U.S. national defense, adds a different perspective to the report as compared to the many others available today.
Report content:
· Industry definition
· Globalization in the steel industry
· The steel crisis of 1998
· Industry growth drivers
· Value chain analysis for the US Steel industry: A diagrammatic representation
· Regulatory framework affecting the U.S. steel Industry
· Comparing U.S., Japanese, & South Korean steel companies
· U.S. steel industry impact on other industries
· Factors Influencing the competitiveness of the U.S. steel industry
· Importance of the steel industry to U.S. national defense
· Leading industry contributors
· U.S. steel Industry: future perspective
Companies cited:
· Mittal Steel Company N.V.
· Nucor Corp.
· United States Steel Corp.
http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c65303
