Straightline Offers New e-Enabled Steel Distribution Service in the Nashville Area

Straightline Source, a division of United States Steel Corporation (NYSE: X), America's largest integrated steelmaker, expanded its electronic procurement and new steel distribution service to customers in the Nashville, Memphis and southern Kentucky areas, offering instant price quotations, consistently lower prices and on-time delivery for a wide range of carbon flat-rolled steel products.

Launched last October, Straightline's growing online steel distribution business is now available to manufacturers from northern Florida up through the Great Lakes region. Additional rollouts are being scheduled throughout the year to highly concentrated areas of steel customers across the United States.

"With the opening of the greater Nashville district, Straightline now serves the entire state of Tennessee and its large diversified steel market including metal construction, appliance manufacturers and metal stampers," said Bob Dryburgh, president of Straightline. "Now manufacturers of all sizes throughout Tennessee will have access to a mill-direct buying approach that puts the customer in control and offers consistently low pricing for product."

The Straightline Solution

Straightline offers a new online and mill-direct buying option for processed steel products to manufacturers of all sizes that typically do not buy directly from steel producers. Customers can receive instant price quotations and place orders for a variety of carbon flat-roll steel, 24 hours a day, seven days a week at http://www.straightline.com/, or by fax or phone with the assistance of knowledgeable customer account managers.

Straightline currently specializes in the sale and distribution of carbon flat-roll steel, including hot roll, cold roll and coated products in slit coil, stock sheets and custom cut-to-length sheets. Customers can order custom processed products or select from a catalog of finished goods. Expanded product offerings and processing options are coming soon, including select strip mill plate products and precision blanks. All products can be purchased on either a spot or contract basis.

In addition, Straightline manages the entire customer relationship and in doing so takes responsibility for all aspects of the transaction, including order placement, steel sourcing, inventory management, delivery, customer service and claims.

Straightline's Customer Advantage

Straightline offers consistently low pricing and a streamlined process that puts the customer in control.

"Straightline offers a really great concept in the steel buying process," says Jim Ceddia, vice president and general manager of Americraft Manufacturing Company based in Cincinnati, Ohio. "The fact that Straightline does not carry overhead helps because they pass the savings on to the customer. The process of ordering steel online is simple, and the overall concept meets our needs as a buyer."

Straightline is able to reduce a customer's total cost of material acquisition by maximizing efficiencies associated with inventory management, material utilization, logistics, planning and order process. Ultimately, this increased efficiency means consistently lower prices for consumers.

With Straightline, buyers are in control of all steel buying processes, from pricing through delivery. Buyers can choose from pricing options based on a selection of delivery dates and a variety of quantities. Straightline also offers just-in-time delivery, allowing customers to receive goods when they need it, according to their warehouse schedule. In addition, buyers can track purchases and easily check on the delivery status of orders anytime of the day or night at http://www.straightline.com/ or by calling Straightline's 24-hour Customer Care Department.

Furthermore, Straightline offers a simple, easy-to-use Web interface, with no complicated technology to learn. The entire steel buying process can be completed online in minutes, not hours or days.

Serving Greater Nashville

Straightline has assembled a network of local processing partners to hold inventory, perform custom processing and deliver finished goods. Processing partners are selected based on rigorous criteria, including ISO certification.

By partnering with Straightline, processors benefit by increasing utilization of their equipment and facilities without the added costs of sales, marketing or inventory, thus improving their overall profitability.

In conjunction with the regional expansion of its customer base, Straightline is expanding its processor network throughout the United States and enhancing its customer offerings within service areas.

Straightline Registration

Steel buyers who want to join Straightline can register quickly and conveniently at http://www.straightline.com/ or by calling Straightline Customer Care toll-free at 1-866-252-0488. There are no registration fees. An instantaneous credit verification is completed online in seconds and buyers are free to make purchases upon approval.

Straightline Source is a division of United States Steel Corporation, and specializes in an online distribution business for carbon flat-roll steel to customers of all sizes that do not typically buy steel goods directly from steel producers. With headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Straightline has a growing staff of 100 employees. Visit Straightline at http://www.straightline.com/.

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SOURCE: Straightline Source

Contact: Maggie Bray of Magnet Communications, +1-412-456-4308, or
mbray@magnetcom.com, for Straightline Source

Website: http://www.ussteel.com/

Website: http://www.straightline.com/

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