Meet the Family & Family Values extractions - O'Neal Steel: A business Built on Family Values
By Lauren Duensing of Modern Metals - A TREND Publication February 2007
In today's rapidly consolidating economy, the number of companies owned by families is dwindling. In Birmingham, Ala., however, O'Neal Steel is thriving on 80 plus years of family experience, which has made it the largest family-owned, full-line service center in the United States. Today the company has more than 70 locations in North America, Europe and Asia, and its mission is to consistently provide the best possible value to its customers.
"Kirkman O'Neal, my grandfather and founder of the company, and Emmit O'Neal, my father, established and operated the business with a family-oriented corporate culture based on honesty and integrity, respect for the individual, entrepreneurial spirit and determination to satisfy customers," says Craft O'Neal, chairman. "These values enabled O'Neal Steel to grow and develop an enviable reputation within and outside the industry. Staying family owned ensures this reputation continues and that your culture and values are never compromised In addition, major decisions can be made quickly with long-term results in mind, rather than a short-term perspective to satisfy analysts and outside shareholders."
Meet the Family
The company's growth has allowed it to maintain a diverse portfolio of services and capabilities. "As the demand for heavy manufactured goods in the United States has grown, our business has grown," says Bill Jones, president and CEO. "More recently, several of our acquisitions have gotten us into the aerospace and special alloys business. That's been a big change for us." He notes that the rise in business from heavy equipment manufacturers has led to more value-added processing, "certainly more than we used to do and more than any other large service center."
To provide the best possible service to its customers, O'Neal has a network of metal service center companies, with each bringing unique capabilities to the table. Metalwest, headquartered in Brighton, Colo., with 10 stocking locations, distributes and processes stainless, aluminum, cold-rolled, and coated sheet and coil.
Aerodyne Alloys, headquartered in Windsor, Conn., with a second facility in Los Angeles, distributes and processes specialized alloys, including nickel, cobalt and titanium, worldwide.
Leeco Steel, headquartered in Chicago, with three additional facilities in Oshkosh, Wis., Pittsburgh and Monterrey, Mexico, distributes and processes abrasion-resistant, extra high-strength and weathering plate, sheet and coil on a just-in-time basis throughout North America.
Exton, Pa. - based TW Metals has 20 U.S. facilities and additional stocking locations in the United Kingdom, France, Poland and India. TW distributes and processes pipe, tube, bar and rod in stainless, aluminum, alloy and carbon, as well as a variety of high alloys and aluminum sheet and plate.
Timberline Steel, Headquartered in Commerce City, Colo., with additional facilities in Grand Junction and Pueblo, Colo. And Farming, N.M., is a full-line service center with one of the largest and most comprehensive processing facilities in the Rocky Mountain Region.
Ferguson Metals, Hamilton, Ohio, rounds out the group as a leading supplier of specialty stainless steel and high-temperature alloys with comprehensive in-house slitting, leveling, edging and shearing capabilities. Ferguson features a comprehensive inventory of hard-to-find grades and gauges that are ordered to specific decimal thicknesses from leading mill sources.
"All of our companies are continually looking at new markets," says O'Neal. "Any geography that is not yet serviced hold potential for expansion."
Family Values
The company's values extend to the relationships it has with its employees. "Another challenge that any service center, or any business, faces today is attracting and retaining people," says Jones.
"Our employees are of utmost importance to us," says O'Neal. "In order to achieve our vision of being the industry leader, we must attract, develop, fully engage and retain the best people."
To accomplish this goal, O'Neal makes sure it is competitive with compensation and benefits, says Jones. In addition, the company puts emphasis on training. "We have internship programs and we try to remain attractive to young people by offering numerous opportunities and training," says Jones. "We're also very visible in the communities where we have operations, and we stay involved with civic organizations, as well as being very active in our trade association."
Serving customer swell requires companies to devote time and attention to their needs, O'Neal finds that being privately owned helps it focus on the customer rather than on Wall Street. Being family owned allows the company to have "a continued focus on customer and employees," says Jones. "The family has been supportive of growth, involved and continues to invest in the company's future."
"We take our values very seriously at O'Neal," says Valenta. She notes that O'Neal's values, as listed on their business cards, are "honesty and integrity, customer driven, entrepreneurial spirit, high-performance expectations and concern for employees." These values start with the O'Neal family, she notes, and "extend to all employees so we feel like we are part of a team that is well-respected within the industry. Treating the employees with trust and respect makes it a great place to work."