Butler, Pennsylvania-based pipe and tube distributor Marmon/Keystone said Tuesday that it is in the process of rebuilding its 120,000 square-foot service center in Birmingham, Alabama that was destroyed in a tornado on January 23. The tornado ripped the roof off the office and warehouse building, collapsed the exterior walls and tore down two overhead cranes from the warehouse ceiling. The new and improved facility will reopen within the next year. Plans include a steel-reinforced concrete storm shelter. While the new building is under construction, a temporary work site has been established about a mile-and-a-half from Marmon/Keystone's property.
The day after the tornado some of the Birmingham plant's employees went to Marmon/Keystone's Atlanta office, while others stayed behind, but all employees have now returned to Birmingham and 60 percent of the branch's inventory has been salvaged and relocated to the temporary site.