Moving Metal

bringing new facilities in West Sacramento, Redding, and Fresno, California into the company fold. By the end of 1998, Reliance had marked six consecu- tive years of record earnings. It had eleven subsidiaries and twenty-three divisions located throughout the United States and had expanded into the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic states. Sales had reached $1.3 billion—up 300 percent since the IPO—and net income hit $47.7 million. Dave Hannah summed up the results of the recent campaign: “We’ve made very, very good acquisitions, companies that have strong positions in their marketplace, and a good reputation for honesty and quality.” And all the while, Reliance’s reputa- tion as the “acquirer of choice” grew. Reliance seldom went looking for opportunities; instead, aspiring acquisitions came to it. In November 1998, Reliance issued $150 million of unse- cured notes, its largest private debt placement to date. The company remained poised for continued growth. NEW BLOOD, NEW BUYS On December 9, 1998, Reliance’s triumphant mood was tempered by the sad news of Bill Gimbel’s death. Since his retirement, he had been confined to his home, where Joe Crider regularly visited, much to Gimbel’s pleasure and appre- ciation. Reliance had been Gimbel’s whole life and he died knowing that the company was still there with him, even at the end. Reliance employees, colleagues, friends, and industry competitors all mourned his passing and paid tribute to his memory. Dave Hannah was hit hard by Gimbel’s death and resolved to keep his legacy alive as a permanent part of the Reliance culture. Reliance suffered another heavy blow only a month later when CFO SteveWeis died following an extended bout with cancer. Although many colleagues knew that Weis’s

Reliance company officers in 2003. From left, Donna Newton, Bill Sales, Karla Lewis, Gregg Mollins, Yvette Schiotis, Dave Hannah, Kay Rustand, and Jim MacBeth.

Lusk had been a previous employer. Within a month, Reliance acquired two more operations. Greensboro, North Caroli- na-based Steel Bar Corporation, founded in 1980, specialized in carbon steel bars and tubing. After the acquisition, Steel Bar operated as a subsidiary of Phoenix Metals Company and in later years became part of Earle M. Jorgensen Company. Reliance also expanded its operations in the mountain-state market by acquiring the forty-one-year-old Denver-based Engbar Pipe & Steel Company, a distributor of carbon steel bars, pipe, and tubing. Joe Crider considered Engbar a “jumping-off point” in the Rocky Mountain region. “We cer- tainly want to be in Denver in a big way,” he confessed at the time. Meanwhile, joint venture American Steel LLC sold its half interest in American Metals Corporation to Reliance,

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