Map: CMC Steel Arizona
MESA -- CMC Steel Arizona has opened its state-of-the-art steel mill in east Mesa in the face of an economic
recession that has severely depressed demand for the plant's output.
Officials of Irving, Texas-based Commercial Metals Co. -- the plant's parent company -- say the $155 million plant will turn scrap metal into concrete-reinforcing bar for use primarily in commercial buildings, roads and other infrastructure projects.
Called a micromill, it is smaller than most steel-making plants and uses one uninterrupted process to melt, cast and roll the steel. The technology saves energy and is more environmentally friendly than conventional steel-making techniques.
CMC will employ about 140 people when it's at full capacity plus another 40 at an adjacent fabricating plant where the rebar is custom assembled for specific projects.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
