Insteel Industries Appoints New Director
03/02/2016 - A longtime North Star Steel manager and executive will be joining the board of wire reinforcing products maker Insteel Industries Inc., the company has announced.
Jon Ruth, who spent 35 years with Cargill and its North Star Steel subsidary, is taking over for Insteel director Louis E. Hannen, who is retiring. Hannen’s retirement, and Ruth’s appointment, take effect 1 April.
From 2003 to 2015, Ruth served as a director and was a past chairman of the North Star BlueScope Steel joint venutre, which ran an Ohio mini-mill that makes hot rolled coil. The company was a 50-50 joint venture between Austrailia’s BlueScope Steel and Cargill, which sold its stake in the business to BlueScope last fall.
Between 2008 and 2015, Ruth also led Cargill’s SAP enterprise resource planning implementation across its businesses in Europe and North America.
But most of his time was spent with North Star, a company he joined in 1980 as a salesman. He worked his way up the sales ranks, becoming vice president of sales and marketing in 1994 and, later, its president. He held that position from 2003 to the end of 2004, when Gerdau acquired North Star's mini-mills.
"We are pleased to welcome Jon to Insteel's board of directors," said H.O. Woltz III, Insteel's president and chief executive, in a statement.
"His extensive knowledge of the steel industry and prior operational and ERP experience with a larger multinational corporation will be a valuable addition, and our board and executive management team look forward to working with him,” Woltz said.
From 2003 to 2015, Ruth served as a director and was a past chairman of the North Star BlueScope Steel joint venutre, which ran an Ohio mini-mill that makes hot rolled coil. The company was a 50-50 joint venture between Austrailia’s BlueScope Steel and Cargill, which sold its stake in the business to BlueScope last fall.
Between 2008 and 2015, Ruth also led Cargill’s SAP enterprise resource planning implementation across its businesses in Europe and North America.
But most of his time was spent with North Star, a company he joined in 1980 as a salesman. He worked his way up the sales ranks, becoming vice president of sales and marketing in 1994 and, later, its president. He held that position from 2003 to the end of 2004, when Gerdau acquired North Star's mini-mills.
"We are pleased to welcome Jon to Insteel's board of directors," said H.O. Woltz III, Insteel's president and chief executive, in a statement.
"His extensive knowledge of the steel industry and prior operational and ERP experience with a larger multinational corporation will be a valuable addition, and our board and executive management team look forward to working with him,” Woltz said.
