Steel Products
Steel 101 Workshop & Proper Nomenclature
Written by John Packard
April 2, 2019
This morning SMU was speaking with one of the e-commerce companies regarding their business and some of the challenges they see when dealing with companies buying and selling steel through their platform. One of the pitfalls recognized by the head of the e-commerce site was the lack of use of proper nomenclature for the products being bought or sold. People were using words such as CQ (commercial quality), which technically doesn’t exist as it was replaced with CS (commercial steel) in various types (Type A, B, etc.) by the ASTM many years ago. The misuse of the technical language for the industry has created the steel equivalent of the City of Babel.
This is one of the reasons why Steel Market Update began our Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshops. One of our goals is to provide the correct foundation to those within the steel community regarding the steel making process. This includes the correct nomenclature regarding products and qualities, proper use of the ASTM materials and understanding some of the basic testing used to guarantee the products being produced by the domestic (and foreign) steel mills.
The SMU Steel 101 workshop is an excellent way to introduce new employees to steel, not only from a production standpoint but also how steel is bought and sold and the market forces that affect steel prices.
We have found that a high percentage of those attending our workshops are employees who have experience within the industry. Their companies are sending them to get exposure to our program, to improve their base knowledge on the steelmaking and rolling process and to increase their knowledge about factors that influence steel prices. We see executives who are moving from one position within the company to a new job (sales to purchasing for example) as well as executives who just want a refresher course about the industry.
We have an exceptional stable of instructors with Roger Walburn (Metallurgist and Marketing with NLMK USA), Chuck McDaniel (Metallurgist & Quality Expert), Mario Briccetti (Former V.P. Purchasing OEM’s), John Packard (President & CEO Steel Market Update, former sales with Service Centers, Steel Mills and Trading Companies) and we have just added a new instructor: Sandy Simon (Sales and Marketing Expert). Our instructors have decades of steel experience and will be excellent sources of information both during and after the workshop is long over.
Your registration fee covers the workshop instruction, breakfast (2), lunch (2), all breaks, networking dinner on the 14th and transportation to and from the SSAB steel mill.
We also provide a 100+ page workbook that you will be able to take back to your office and use as a reference.
Included with our workshop is a three-month subscription to the Premium level of our Steel Market Update newsletter. This alone has a value of $576.25.
Our next workshop will be held in Davenport, Iowa, on May 14-15, 2019. We will tour the SSAB steel mill as part of our workshop. You can get to Davenport either by flying into the Quad Cities Airport (Moline, IL) with the airport code of MLI, or you can fly into either of the Chicago airports (ORD or MDW), which are about a 2.5-hour drive away.
What January 2019 Attendees Had to Say About Attending a Steel 101 Workshop:
“I would definitely recommend it to new and experienced people in the Steel Industry. Glad I was able to attend….” Diane Cuevas, Goodman Manufacturing
“This seminar was very necessary for me to learn the basics of steel; the technical and slang words, the gages of material and how it is produced and run through a mill. I feel I will be more engaged and able to communicate better in conversations with steel service center representatives.” Kathryn Czarnecki, Mestek
“Being in the pipe and tube industry, it was nice to understand the process and actually see how the coils are produced. Also being able to gain knowledge about other areas that I haven’t thought about. This is a well put together class and I look forward to meeting the folks from SMU down the road.” Josh Thomas, EXL Tube
“John’s [Packard] training program is really needed in this industry. All steel salesmen should attend this program especially day one.” John Meyer, Leggett & Platt
“The Steel 101 Workshop provided the foundation of the steelmaking process and market insights to make more informed decisions, identify trends, and delivery valuable information to companies and customers.” Mike O’Neil – Director of Purchasing – Edw. C. Levy Co.
“This workshop was an awesome introduction if you don’t have any background in steel. I’d highly recommend it to anyone new to the steel industry, or industries adjacent to steel. You’ll leave with a very solid grasp on the commodity.” Breanne Steele, Goodman Manufacturing
How to Find More Information / Register for May 14-15 SMU Steel 101 Workshop:
www.SteelMarketUpdate.com/events/steel101
You are also welcome to contact SMU at 800-432-3475 or info@SteelMarketUpdate.com
John Packard
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