The Timken Company held a groundbreaking ceremony today to mark the commencement of work on a $225 million expansion of the Faircrest Steel Plant in Stark County, Ohio.
The investment by the specialty alloy steel and industrial components manufacturer is expected to improve the Faircrest plant's productivity, expand its product range and increase capacity to serve growing demand for Timken specialty alloy steel bars.
A new ladle refiner and large-bloom continuous caster are the centerpieces of the steel plant expansion. Targeted for start-up in 2014, the new equipment is expected to increase the Faircrest plant's shippable capacity by 25 percent and enable the production of a broader range of large-diameter bars.
"Demand for Timken steel to support the challenging needs of energy and industrial applications continues to grow in this region, throughout the United States, and in the developing economies of the world," chairman of the board Ward J. "Tim" Timken, Jr., told the crowd gathered for the groundbreaking.
"This investment is part of the company's ongoing strategy to expand in markets that value the reliability and efficiency of our world-leading products and offer opportunity for sustained long-term growth."
Officials of The Timken Company were joined at the ceremony by Ohio Governor John Kasich, Senator Rob Portman, Rep. Jim Renacci, Rep. Bob Gibbs, state Rep. William Batchelder and other state and local political leaders.
