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U. S. Steel Announces Management Changes at Gary, Granite City
02/18/2009 - United States Steel announces several management changes at its domestic operating facilities, including the appointment of Sharon K. Owen as General Manager of Gary Works in Gary, Ind.
United States Steel Corp. announced several management changes at the company's domestic operating facilities, including the appointment of Sharon K. Owen as General Manager of Gary Works in Gary, Ind.
In her new position, Owen (54) will have responsibility for steelmaking and finishing operations at Gary Works, tin production at East Chicago Tin in East Chicago, Ind., and finishing operations at Midwest Plant in Portage, Ind. Gary Works—the largest single integrated steelmaking facility in the United States—has an annual raw steelmaking capability of 7.5 million net tons. Owen will report to Michael S. Williams, Vice President-Operations, Midwest.
"Sharon has held key leadership roles within our company, including several at the Northwest Indiana facilities she will now oversee," said Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer John H. Goodish. "We are confident that her broad background and strong managerial skills will be an important asset to our Gary Works operations."
Owen brings over 30 years of experience to her new position, including increasingly responsible positions spanning quality, customer service, sales and marketing, and operations. Her career, which began in 1978 at the company’s Gary Works, later included positions at the company’s Fairless Plant (Mon Valley Works), Pittsburgh Headquarters, the company’s Automotive Center in Troy, Mich., Midwest Plant, and back to Gary Works before she was appointed to her current position as General Manager of the company’s Granite City Works in February 2008. In her new position, Owen replaces Frederick G. Jauss, who has elected to retire after 39 years of service with the company.
"Fred Jauss' distinguished career has been characterized by solid leadership and remarkable flexibility," said Goodish. "During his 39 years with our company, Fred managed some of our most important functions and disciplines with the highest level of professionalism."
Owen will be replaced as General Manager at Granite City Works by Richard E. Veitch who will return from the company's operation in the Republic of Serbia. In his new position, Veitch (46) will oversee operations at Granite City Works, a St. Louis-area plant with an annual raw steelmaking capability of 2.8 million net tons. Veitch will also report to Michael S. Williams.
"Rick has demonstrated his skills as an operator and a manager throughout his career, including during his most recent assignment as the head of our Serbian operations. His experience will serve Granite City Works and the surrounding community well," Goodish commented.
Veitch brings nearly 25 years of industry experience to his new position, including positions in Gary Works’ cold rolling mill and finishing operations followed by increasingly responsible positions at the former National Steel (before its 2003 acquisition by U.S. Steel), at U.S. Steel’s Midwest Plant, Irvin and Fairless Plants (both part of the Mon Valley Works), U.S. Steel Kosice, and U.S. Steel Serbia. He assumed his current position as Vice President and General Director of U.S. Steel Serbia in 2007 with responsibility for the management of U. S. Steel facilities in Smederevo, Sabac and Kucevo.
The company said the announced moves are effective March 1.
Owen began her U. S. Steel career at Gary Works in 1978, where she progressed through several supervisory positions in the quality assurance department before serving as a Customer Technical Services Representative at several sales offices in the East and Midwest beginning in 1990.
Owen was named Manager of Quality Assurance for Mon Valley Works' Fairless Plant near Philadelphia (1993); Senior Area Manager—Steel Producing at Gary Works (1994); and Manager of Automotive Marketing at Pittsburgh headquarters (1996). She advanced through a series of sales and marketing positions in automotive and tin products before being named General Manager—Commercial, Tin Products (2003), then General Manager—Automotive, based at U. S. Steel's Automotive Center in Troy, Mich. (2004).
Owen was named Plant Manager-Midwest Plant in 2005 and then moved back to Gary Works in 2006 to serve as Plant Manager—Primary Operations. She advanced to her most recent position, General Manager-Granite City Works, in February 2008.
Owen earned a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Purdue University in 1978 and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Pittsburgh in 1998.
Veitch started at U. S. Steel in 1981 as a co-op student employee in the hot strip mill at Gary Works. After completing his undergraduate degree in 1985, he joined the company full time, serving as a Turn Foreman in Gary Works' cold rolling mill. He progressed through managerial positions in several areas of the facility's finishing operations before joining National Steel in 1996.
When U. S. Steel acquired National Steel in 2003, Veitch was named Division Manager of sheet products for the Midwest Plant, a former National facility. Later that year, he was named Plant Manager of Mon Valley Works' Irvin Plant, where he was responsible for all rolling and finishing operations at the suburban Pittsburgh facility as well as the galvanizing line at Mon Valley Works' Fairless Plant.
In 2006, Veitch relocated to the Slovak Republic to serve as Vice President—Operations at U. S. Steel Kosice. He assumed his most recent position, Vice President and General Director of U. S. Steel Serbia, in November 2007 with responsibility for managing U. S. Steel facilities in Smederevo, Sabac and Kucevo.
Veitch attended Purdue University-Lafayette (Ind.) for both his undergraduate and graduate studies, earning his bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering in 1985 and his master's degree in management in 1992.
Jauss (59) joined U. S. Steel in 1968 as a co-op student employee in the metallurgy department at the company's Fairless Works, serving in that position until his graduation from Drexel University in 1972 with a bachelor's degree in metallurgical engineering. After graduating, he accepted a management trainee position in Fairless' sheet and tin metallurgy department.
From 1972 to 1983, Jauss progressed through a series of supervisory positions in the plant's tin mill quality control, metallurgy and quality assurance departments. He then transferred to Gary Works, where he spent eight years advancing through positions including Quality Assurance Manager—Hot Rolling; Area Manager—Hot Rolling; and Manager—Hot Rolling and Sheet and Tin Quality Assurance.
Jauss moved to Fairfield Works (Fairfield, Ala.) in 1991, to serve as Manager of Quality Assurance. He was later named General Manager of Research at Pittsburgh headquarters (1996); General Manager of Sheet Technology (1999); and Managing Director of Technology (2002). In 2003, Jauss returned to Gary Works to serve as Plant Manager—Finishing Operations. Two years later, he was appointed General Manager—Great Lakes Works, where he oversaw steelmaking and finishing operations at the company's Ecorse and River Rouge, Mich., facility. He returned to Gary Works in February 2008 after being named to his most recent position.
