TimkenSteel Moves to Recapture a Piece of a Specialized Tube Market
02/18/2016 - U.S.-based TimkenSteel is re-entering the market for the specialized tubing needed to make a widely used type of plastic and has taken its first order, the company announced.
The special bar quality (SBQ) maker didn't identify the customer, although it said the customer is a major petrochemical producer.
Timken used to be a global supplier of the thick-walled, high-pressure tubing (HPT) required to make low-density polyethylene, but a shift in business strategy brought about its exit from the market. However, TimkenSteel is returning, having developed a streamlined production process that it says will significantly reduce the time needed to make the tubes.
"HPT that previously took more than a year to produce now takes a matter of months," said Shawn Seanor, TimkenSteel's executive vice president of sales and business development, in a statement. "Another advantage our process offers is flexibility, allowing customers to buy smaller lot sizes," he said.
For years, the tubing could be sourced only from overseas manufacturers, and given that it is technically challenging to make, North American buyers often had no choice but to accept long lead times and high costs. TimkenSteel and alliance partner A&A Machine & Fabrication LLC hope to change that.
"This agreement will position us and TimkenSteel for the future growth in North America and other parts of the world for HPT supply. Users of the tubing will be able to plan projects with a more accurate forecast due to the shorter lead times, ease of inspection and oversight of the manufacturing process," said A&A president and chief executive Alan Hutchins in a statement.
The manufacturing originates at TimkenSteel's Canton, Ohio, USA, mill, where SBQ steel is forged-rolled and heat treated. It is then sent to TimkenSteel’s material services plant in Houston, Texas, where the bar is bored and honed. Tubes are then sent to A&A's 80,000-square-foot shop in Texas for additional processing. A&A also is handling the marketing and sales.
Timken used to be a global supplier of the thick-walled, high-pressure tubing (HPT) required to make low-density polyethylene, but a shift in business strategy brought about its exit from the market. However, TimkenSteel is returning, having developed a streamlined production process that it says will significantly reduce the time needed to make the tubes.
"HPT that previously took more than a year to produce now takes a matter of months," said Shawn Seanor, TimkenSteel's executive vice president of sales and business development, in a statement. "Another advantage our process offers is flexibility, allowing customers to buy smaller lot sizes," he said.
For years, the tubing could be sourced only from overseas manufacturers, and given that it is technically challenging to make, North American buyers often had no choice but to accept long lead times and high costs. TimkenSteel and alliance partner A&A Machine & Fabrication LLC hope to change that.
"This agreement will position us and TimkenSteel for the future growth in North America and other parts of the world for HPT supply. Users of the tubing will be able to plan projects with a more accurate forecast due to the shorter lead times, ease of inspection and oversight of the manufacturing process," said A&A president and chief executive Alan Hutchins in a statement.
The manufacturing originates at TimkenSteel's Canton, Ohio, USA, mill, where SBQ steel is forged-rolled and heat treated. It is then sent to TimkenSteel’s material services plant in Houston, Texas, where the bar is bored and honed. Tubes are then sent to A&A's 80,000-square-foot shop in Texas for additional processing. A&A also is handling the marketing and sales.
