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Worthington Launches JV to Serve China’s Steel-Frame Housing Market

01/05/2011 - Worthington Industries announced this week the creation of a joint venture to manufacture light gauge steel framing products and to design, engineer and supply light gauge steel-framed mid-rise residential buildings in five Central Chinese provinces.

Worthington Industries, Inc. announced this week the creation of a joint venture to manufacture light gauge steel framing products and to design, engineer and supply light gauge steel-framed mid-rise residential buildings in five Central Chinese provinces.
 
The 40/60 joint venture will be known as Worthington Modern Steel Framing System Co., Ltd.
Hubei Modern Urban Construction & Development Group Co., Ltd. (HMUCG) of China will hold a 60% stake in the joint venture, with Worthington controlling the remaining 40%.
 
The joint venture will operate in the Chinese provinces of Hubei, Hunan, Henan, Jiangxi and Anhui, which have a combined population of approximately 300 million. It is an initiative of the Worthington Global Group, created recently to leverage Worthington’s capabilities in markets with growth opportunities, particularly where governments seek to develop housing for their growing middle-class populations.
 

The Worthington Global Group also has been working on a large-scale project in Mozambique, Africa, underway since September 2010.
 
The project involves the construction of up to 26 residential buildings using Worthington’s steel framing system on the campus of the All-Africa Games, scheduled for September 2011. These buildings will require nearly 4000 tons of steel, and the majority of studs and stairs are being exported from Worthington’s U.S. operations.
 
“This project provides the opportunity for us to show the attributes of our steel framing system in an international setting. Our design and building methods can deliver this type of project in a much shorter time frame than traditional building methods,” said Worthington Industries Chairman and CEO John McConnell.
“This joint venture is a great example of our global strategy for our mid-rise system as we introduce steel framing to new markets. We have identified several attractive and developing worldwide markets with strong demographics that have the potential to provide a magnitude of scale,” said Worthington Industries Chairman and CEO John McConnell. “Our global strategy provides an opportunity to enhance the demand for light gauge steel-framed residential structures and allows us to leverage our core competencies in metals manufacturing, and in design and engineered building products.

 
“We have invested resources in China over the past five years to pursue this market, and those efforts are starting to pay off,” McConnell said. “Our Shanghai design office has been engaged in trial steel-framed mid-rise buildings for several months with the Ministry of Construction as China focuses on national building codes that promote steel framing.”
 
The China joint venture will also supply curtain wall and interior framing solutions for commercial buildings and operate out of a facility being constructed in the city of Xintao, near Wuhan, in the Hubei province. Considered one of eight “Ring Cities”, Xintao is the site of the Sino-Canada High-Technology Industrial development. This development is a joint effort of the Balloch Group of Canada and HMUCG. It will serve as a catalyst for the demand of steel-framed products.
 
Wuhan, the primary city in the Hubei region, is the target of significant development efforts by the Chinese government under its “Rise of Central China Program,” which includes a focus on developing second-tier cities.
 
Established in 2003, Hubei Modern Urban Construction & Development Group (HMUCG) is a construction and real-estate development firm with strong commercial ties based in the Hubei province. In conjunction with the Balloch Group of Canada, HMUCG is developing the Modern Sino-Canada Science and Technology center in one of the eight ring cities of Wuhan. This sizeable development is expected to provide significant demand for the Worthington Modern Steel Framing System Joint Venture.
 
Worthington Global Group operates with a business platform that includes high density mid-rise residential construction in emerging international markets. It is led by Ralph Roberts, a Worthington veteran of more than 30 years. The Global Group is leveraging the expertise gained from construction of more than 10 million square feet of mid-rise buildings over the last six years in the U.S. using W-IBS (Worthington Integrated Building System), a highly engineered steel framing system.
 
Worthington Industries is a leading diversified metals manufacturing company with 2010 fiscal year sales of approximately $1.9 billion. The Columbus, Ohio, based company is a value-added steel processor and a leader in manufactured pressure cylinders; light gauge steel framing for commercial and residential construction; framing systems and stairs for mid-rise buildings; current and past model automotive service stampings; metal ceiling grid systems; steel pallets and racks; and through joint ventures, suspension grid systems for concealed and lay-in panel ceilings, and laser welded blanks. Worthington employs approximately 6500 people and operates 65 facilities in 11 countries.
 
Founded in 1955, the company operates under a long-standing corporate philosophy rooted in the golden rule. Earning money for its shareholders is the first corporate goal. This philosophy serves as an unwavering commitment to the customer, supplier, and shareholder, and it serves as the company’s foundation for one of the strongest employee-employer partnerships in American industry.