Quanex Corp.’s Board of Directors has approved Phase 9, a $38 million value added capital improvement project for its MacSteel Monroe facility.

Phase 9 will include a MacPlus^(r) bar turning line, straightening and testing lines, and heat treat furnaces, all housed in a new building. The expansion, consistent with Quanex's 2005 capital budget, is expected to be completed by December 2006 and will result in improved productivity and enhanced customer service.

"Customer demand, for additional value-added products and services produced specifically by MacSteel, continues to grow," said Raymond Jean, Quanex's Chairman and CEO. "This project will allow us to better serve customers by providing them with the highest quality product produced by state-of-the-art equipment and delivered on a more timely basis."

Quanex Corp., based in Houston, Texas, is an industry leading manufacturer of value added engineered materials and components for the vehicular and building products markets. Jackson, Mich., based MacSteel is a subsidiary of Quanex.