Metals Processor Relocates to University Park

Kloeckner Metals Corp.’s flat-rolled division recently relocated from Chicago to a new building in University Park.

The metals processor and distributor had been at 13535 S. Torrence Ave. for more than 19 years and began operations last November in a 106,000-square-foot building at 25056 S. Will Center Road in University Park.

Kloeckner’s customers include firms in the agricultural, construction, mining, railway and automotive sectors, but the company said in a news release that the new facility gives it the ability to target users of metals such as aluminum and stainless steel used in making food service equipment and appliances.

The company said it was operating in a 100-year-old building in Chicago, and that along with additional space, the new University Park building affords Kloeckner expanded processing capabilities and increased crane capacity, with new equipment that can handle coils weighing up to 60,000 pounds. The building is also next to a rail siding so materials can be received by rail cars, the company said.

There are 51 employees at the University Park facility, but the company expects employment to grow as it continues to obtain new business, according to Tony Munno, general manager of the flat-rolled division. He said the new building has the capability of being doubled in size to accommodate growth.

Kloeckner said it would not disclose how much was spent on the move, but in the news release it was described as a “multimillion-dollar investment.”

In a report about state tax credits issued to Illinois firms in 2014, the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity noted that Kloeckner’s investment in the University Park development was projected to be $11.4 million. The firm was approved for EDGE — economic development for a growing economy — credits against state income taxes due to the dollar investment and number of jobs that would be retained. The DCEO noted that Kloeckner was physically unable to expand at its Chicago location and was also considering a site in nearby Hammond, Ind.

The Chicago service center had at one time been part of Macsteel’s U.S. network of steel service centers, which Kloeckner Metals’ parent, Duisburg, Germany-based Kloeckner & Co., purchased in 2011. Kloeckner Metals is based in Roswell, Ga. Kloeckner & Co., according to its website, has 190 metals processing and distribution locations in 13.

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