Tennessee based steel fabricator Heartland Inc said that it recently acquired 37 industrial acres in the southwest Central Ohio city with plans to develop a venture dubbed Heartland Steel. The subsidiary would serve as a steel service center, holding and processing inventory and providing next day delivery to clients.

Mr Randy Frevert a Heartland board member said that it did not disclose terms of the sale, but it company expects to bring in a few existing employees and hire 15 or more within the next 6 months in anticipation of a spring opening. He added that "We are planning to hire as many local people as we can."

Mr Frevert said that Heartland saw potential in Central Ohio after seeing larger companies serving area clients through service centers in Pittsburgh, Detroit and Indianapolis. He added that "We are willing to ship less than full truckloads, from one piece to 50 pieces of steel. Nobody likes to do that but we feel that is our niche."

He said that the potential for Heartland Steel grew out of the misfortune of another company. Mason based Steelox Systems LLC, a metal building and roofing systems manufacturer, closed its doors in late 2004, a move that led to the closure of a plant in Washington Court House. The plant was razed, but its industrial grade concrete floors and footings were left intact, saving a major construction hurdle and the costs that go with it.

He added that initial plans call for a 60,000 square foot facility whose size can easily be doubled. From there, it could expand to up to 200,000 square feet within the first few years of operations. Heartland is working to create the new subsidiary only months after closing a deal to buy Lee Oil Co, a petroleum marketer and distributor. The 100 employee company mainly operates through its Springboro based Mound Technologies Inc subsidiary, a steel fabricator it bought in 2003.

(Sourced from columbus.bizjournals.com)