U.S. Butech Bliss to build the world's largest hot-steel slab shear.

U.S.: Butech Bliss lands huge deal to build giant steel slab shear. Butech Bliss Executive Vice President Jock Buta said after answering the initial order inquiry and because Butech Bliss wanted neutral cash flow arrangements as the project proceeded, there was considerable doubt about winning it. "I thought they would nix us," said Buta. The Salem heavy equipment manufacturer had submitted a bid to ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel producer, to build the world's largest hot-steel slab shear. The Luxembourg City-based ArcelorMittal required a machine capable of cutting three-inch thick by 84-inch wide hot steel slabs traveling up to 250 feet per minute through Europe's largest steel mill. Buta said Butech Bliss insisted that if it won the contract, it had to have neutral "cash flow" and the doubts about meeting that criteria were strong enough to convince the company it would get knocked out of the running. In fact, Buta said, "We tried to back out." But things aren't always the way they seem. It wasn't long before Buta, Tony Nackino, vice president of technology, Randy Smrek, sales manager and John Wallace, manager of rolling mill sales, jumped on a plane and "flew over for negotiations." The equipment will be sent to ArcelorMittal's Bremen, Germany facility, a port city located in the industrial northwest Germany. The payment structure concerns wasn't a problem, Buta said, "They said our design was really better." He added, "They preferred ours over the big guys ... It was a really a victory, quite an achievement to go shoulder-to-shoulder with the big guys." The deal, which Buta said ArcelorMittal was committed to sealing by Sept. 1, concluded six weeks of talks. The Butech Bliss competitors included large multi-billion dollar companies from Europe, so the contract also represents a significant victory for American manufacturing. Butech Bliss officials pointed out that earlier this year, the only other large U.S. mill builder was sold to one of the dominant European builders, leaving Butech Bliss as one of the last American-owned large steel mill equipment builders. While the financial details are proprietary, one thing the order will do is bring some employees Butech Bliss was forced to lay off back to work. "This order represents a needed step to both hiring back employees from layoff as well as reinstituting the other benefit cuts we have asked of our employees," Buta said, adding it "has many strong sales prospects as its customers begin to release orders for major capital expenditures that they have been holding back on, and the company expects more significant orders to be placed in the near future." The shear will weigh approximately one million pounds fully assembled, with its largest single component weighing over 100 tons. Butech Bliss estimates it will require nearly four man-years of engineering and 15 man-years of manufacturing. With many employees working simultaneously, the shear is scheduled to be delivered to Germany in late 2010. Butech Bliss will purchase approximately $9 million of materials and components, nearly all in the U.S. and much of it from here in Ohio. Last year's acquisition of the former Sekely facility on Pennsylvania Avenue will play an important role in completing the work. Buta said the order is another record machine in Butech Bliss' reputation for large machinery. The company is currently manufacturing the largest steel sheet stretch-level line in North America for Universal Steel of Cleveland. In parallel, Butech Bliss is building components for one of the two largest forging presses in North America for Wyman Gordon of Worcester, Mass. The 50,000 ton forging press requires production of large six feet diameter by 10 feet long hydraulic cylinders including the development of first ever welding of 12 inch thick alloy steel, typically used in submarine hulls and armor plating. The other largest North American forging press is the Alcoa Cleveland press. Alcoa Cleveland has been in the news recently for its need to spend over $100 million in upgrades, similar in scope to Butech Bliss' current contract with Wyman Gordon, and for which Butech Bliss is uniquely suited. Other recent large orders include one of the largest hot-steel downcoilers in Eastern Europe, upgrade of the largest aluminum extrusion press in North America, and the largest titanium sheet levelers worldwide.