Mac Metals Inc, a fully integrated brass mill in Kearny, New Jersey, reached a significant milestone in its ongoing efforts to recover from the flooding that resulted from Superstorm Sandy. “Not only are we back on track to serve all of our customers, we are operating with improved equipment and replenished stock inventories” says Fran Rothschild, president.
Thank you to all of our customers who remained with us during this difficult situation.
Mac Metals sat under six feet of brackish water in the hours after the storm. The casting shop, extrusion press, run-out bench and fabricating room were all under water. Tooling and inventory was also impacted by the flooding. The entire neighborhood surrounding the mill was also flooded. It was a full week before a realistic assessment of the damage could be concluded.
Mac customers and suppliers were notified that Mac Metals would be closed during November with a goal of partial production by Thanksgiving. “Communications was the key to making this entire situation work”, say Mark Sisson, sales manager. “We contacted all of our customers and let them know that orders would be impacted for the rest of the year”.
The recovery game plan was to concentrate on the extrusion press and billet furnace first. Motors and pumps were dismantled and sent to vendors to be dried and or re-built. Electrical panels were repaired and replaced and new wired pulled. All exposed surfaces were power washed and treated.
Extrusion began on a limited basis by the end of November. The press operated on a limited schedule as stretching, straightening and sawing stations were re-built. By mid-December the mill was producing at 40% of capacity. The last two weeks of December were utilized to do some major electrical repairs and most of the mill could not operate.
During January and February Mac Metals continued to add new or rebuilt equipment into the production mix. The final pieces, a new die polishing machine and rebuilt sill straightening machine were on line at the end of February. Complicating the recovery was a strong first quarter that extended lead times to 12 weeks. Capacity has been expanded in order to catch up with current orders.
Thank you to all of our customers who remained with us during this difficult situation. For many customers, orders were delayed for 4 to 8 weeks, depending on the production sequence. When possible, Mac made smaller deliveries to keep shops operating and expedited product when necessary. Mac Metals also located alternative sources so that customers would not loose opportunities.
Mac Metals, Inc. is a fully integrated brass mill specializing in thin wall architectural shapes in brass, bronze and nickel silver. Mac maintains stocking programs for common architectural bronze shapes (bars, angles, tees, etc.) and elevator sills and thresholds.
Visit Mac Metals at www.macmetals.com or call 800-631-9510.
