Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. has reached an agreement to acquire Chapel Steel Corp., headquartered in Spring House, Pa. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Founded in 1972, Chapel Steel is a privately held metals service center company that processes and distributes carbon and alloy steel plate products from five facilities in Pottstown, Pa.; Bourbonnais, Ill.; Houston, Texas; Birmingham, Ala.; and Portland, Ore. Chapel also warehouses and distributes its products in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Hamilton, Ont., Canada. Chapel's net sales for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2004 were approximately $273 million. Chapel services the construction, defense, heavy equipment, shipbuilding, energy and other industries.

Reliance's CEO, David H. Hannah, said, "Chapel is a well-run and growing company that adds to both our product offerings and our geographic coverage across the country. We are very excited about the future potential of this new addition to the Reliance family."

The transaction is expected to be finalized within 60 days, subject to the successful completion of due diligence and regulatory approvals.

Headquartered in Los Angeles, Calif., Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. is one of the largest metals service center companies in the United States. Through a network of more than 100 locations in 30 states and Belgium, France and South Korea, the Company provides value-added metals processing services and distributes a full line of over 90,000 metal products. These products include galvanized, hot-rolled and cold-finished steel; stainless steel; aluminum; brass; copper; titanium and alloy steel sold to more than 95,000 customers in various industries.