Esmark Steel Names Michael Ogrizovich and Joel Mazur to Board of Directors

Ogrizovich, who will continue in his current role as President, is a 35-year steel industry veteran and joined Esmark Steel Group in 2003. During his tenure he has helped lead the steel group’s impressive organic and acquisition growth, propelling the company to become one of the 25 largest steel service center networks in the country. He is a co-founder of the company and serves as a member of the Board of Directors of Esmark’s Ohio Coatings Company joint venture subsidiary and the company’s joint venture with Loeffel Steel Group in Chicago and Pittsburgh.

“Mike has been instrumental in the formation, growth and reputation of the company since its inception,” said Bouchard. “His management skills, knowledge and operational experience at the mill, service center and steel trading levels have been invaluable assets, and I’m delighted he will take on the additional responsibilities as Vice Chairman of our Mill Operations.”

Prior to joining Esmark Steel Group, Ogrizovich was a District Manager at Arcelor (now Arcelor Mittal), where he helped develop and grow the company’s steel trading operations. He began his career at Inland Steel in 1981 as a management trainee in Primary Production Operations, and was subsequently promoted through several positions in the company’s Blast Furnace Operations division.

In 1988, Ogrizovich joined Inland Steel’s Sales and Marketing organization, holding a series of senior sales and management positions. In 1995, he joined Beta Steel in Portage, Indiana, as Manager of Sales and Marketing and held that position until he joined Arcelor in 1998. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the Kelly School of Business at Indiana University and an MBA from Loyola University in Chicago.

Mazur joins Esmark Steel Group from Pittsburgh-based CENTRIA, where he served as President from 2012-2015 and later as a consultant to parent company NCI Building Systems, Inc. CENTRIA is a leading provider of architectural metal panel systems for the non-residential construction industry, as well as a supplier of specialty continuous coil coatings solutions for internal and OEM customers.

From 2008 to 2012 Mazur served as President and CEO of Wheeling Corrugating Company, a subsidiary of Wheeling Pittsburgh Steel Corporation, which OAO Severstal purchased from Esmark, Inc. in 2008 for an enterprise value of $1.3 billion. In 2011 Wheeling Corrugated was sold by Severstal NA to RG Steel Company and became a division of that company.

“Joel was a trusted colleague, valued advisor and operations expert who guided Wheeling Corrugated through a tumultuous period in the steel industry,” said Bouchard. “For more than 30 years he has crafted and executed a number of successful business and commercial strategies and is highly regarded across the steel industry. We are thrilled that he’s coming home to Esmark to help lead and build our service center operations network across the country and abroad.”

Prior to Wheeling Corrugated, Mazur served as President of Sharon, Pennsylvania-based Winner Steel, a hot-dipped galvanized steel converter company with annual capacity of 1.2 million tons. Mazur’s career also includes senior management positions with Tech Industries, Inc., several industry start-ups, and senior sales and management positions with Weirton Steel Corporation and National Steel Corporation.

Mazur holds a BA in Economics and a Graduate School of Business Administration continuing education Certificate from Harvard University, and an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh.

About Esmark Steel Group

Headquartered in Pittsburgh and with sales, marketing and distribution facilities across the U.S., Esmark Steel Group services the metals processing and distribution requirements of Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) engaged in the automotive, building construction, appliances, consumer products, containers and storage/shelving industries.

As one of the nation’s largest distributors of flat-rolled steel products, Esmark maintains Just-In-Time Inventory in a full range of product grades. All Esmark Steel Group facilities are ISO 9001 Certified.
(Source: Esmark Steel Group)