New organization formed to preserve America's steel history
A new nonprofit organization has been formed to preserve Northwest Indiana's steel heritage that helped win two world wars, created jobs for generations of local steelworkers and formed the base of the area's business development.
"Steel was first poured on the shores of Lake Michigan at the Indiana Harbor plant of Inland Steel Co. in 1902," according to The Northwest Indiana Steel Heritage Project Inc. "Since then, Northwest Indiana has been home to some of the largest steel plants in the country."
The goal for the Northwest Indiana Steel Heritage Project is to establish several sites to display steel-related artifacts, including personal effects like ID badges and photographs from former steelworkers. The group also hopes to have a mobile display that can be set up at local historical and educational functions.
The project has already garnered pledges of support from the United Steelworkers union; US Rep. Pete Viscolsky, D-Ind.; and ArcelorMittal USA. The project's board of directors, which includes representatives of labor, business and education, plans to work with ArcelorMittal, US Steel Corp, local tourism agencies and municipalities to achieve its goals.
Young engineers compete to build the best steel bridge
College engineering students from around the country are competing in various regional competitions, sponsored by the American Society of Civil Engineers, to see who can construct the best steel bridge.
Students are asked to fabricate, design, and build a bridge that's able to hold at least 2,000 pounds. With more than one in four of America's bridges being structurally deficient, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers, there is certainly plenty of demand for this kind of talent.
Competitors are judged on aesthetics, construction speed and strength. A cheering audience watches as teams build their bridges and then load on the weight.
In one of the recently held collegiate steel bridge building competitions, the winning team for the Midwest region, comprised of engineering students from Lawrence Technical University, was able to build a bridge made of aircraft steel, round and square tubing, weighing 140 pounds and supporting 2,600 pounds, in only 12 minutes.
This weekend, engineering students in upstate New York and in the mid-Atlantic region will compete in their own regional steel bridge building contests. The winning teams will go on to the nationals, which will be held in Las Vegas this June.
Steel structure of Red Bull Arena complete
This past Tuesday saw the traditional "topping off" ceremony which celebrated the completion of the steel construction of the new Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey. A number of state, local government and union officials were on hand to celebrate the construction milestone for the state-of-the-art soccer-specific arena which will be the home stadium of the New York Red Bulls.
The final piece of steel being secured in place signifies a a key milestone in the construction process for Red Bull Arena. It is the last piece of over 7,100 tons of steel that have been erected since the first piece was set on August 19, 2008. As per the tradition, a tree was hoisted on top of the last beam, marking the highest structural element. The tree will remain in place throughout the remainder of the building process, and will be planted nearby upon the project's completion.
The new stadium, which is entirely funded by Red Bull, will have 25,000 seats, 30 suites and 1,116 club seats. The stadium design incorporates a unique rooftop, which will extend from the last seat to just over the touchlines. Part of the roof will be translucent to allow natural light to enter. To see a video of the topping-off ceremony and catch a glimpse of the stadium's unique steel structure, visit the New York Red Bulls' official blog at: http://redbullsreader.wordpress.com/.
AK Steel wins "outstanding child and family advocate" award
West Chester, Ohio-based AK Steel was recently awarded an outstanding child and family advocate award from the Celebrating Families Committee, a group of leading nonprofit organizations in Butler County, Ohio. This award recognizes the company's long-standing tradition of community involvement and programs that help make a difference in the lives of children and families.
"We are honored to receive the outstanding child and family advocate award," said James L. Wainscott, AK Steel chairman, president and CEO. "The award reflects the character of our company and the compassion of our employees at all of our plant operations - two characteristics that continue to help make AK Steel a successful company and solid corporate citizen."
Now in its 15th year, the outstanding child and family advocate awards are presented annually to individuals and organizations that demonstrate exemplary support of children and families in Butler County, Ohio.
In addition to the Celebrating Families Committee, AK Steel's corporate citizenship efforts have been recognized throughout the years by organizations such as the Greater Cincinnati Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the Down Syndrome Association of Greater Cincinnati and the Greater Cincinnati United Way, Middletown Area.