U. S. Steel Announces Management Changes at Headquarters and Research & Technology Center

PITTSBURGH, Aug. 1, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- United States Steel Corporation (NYSE: X) Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer John H. Goodish today announced two management changes at the company's corporate headquarters in Pittsburgh and Research & Technology Center in Munhall, Pa. Frederick T. Harnack has been appointed general manager- operational excellence. In this new role, Harnack reports to Goodish. Replacing Harnack as general manager-research is Kevin L. Zeik. Zeik now reports to Anton Lukac, vice president-engineering & technology. The changes are effective today.

In his new position, Harnack, 53, is responsible for implementing the company's operational excellence initiative, which will focus on continuous improvement, technology advancement and standardization activities that will enhance efficiency and drive operational performance across the company. He will be based at the company's corporate headquarters in Pittsburgh. Harnack began his career with U. S. Steel in 1976 as a management trainee at the slab mill at Mon Valley Works' Edgar Thomson Plant in Braddock, Pa. He advanced through various operating and maintenance positions at the Edgar Thomson Plant and the former Homestead (Pa.) Works before being named area manager for maintenance at the Edgar Thomson slab mill in 1987. Later, he moved to Mon Valley Works' Irvin Plant in West Mifflin, Pa., to serve as area manager of galvanizing.

From 1990 to 1993, Harnack served as the operations consultant for the PRO-TEC Coating Company in Leipsic, Ohio, a joint venture between U. S. Steel and Kobe Steel of Japan. In 1993, he returned to the Mon Valley Works as the casting and rolling operating director.

Harnack was named plant manager at the Edgar Thomson Plant in 1996 and advanced to general manager of Mon Valley Works in 1999. Following the acquisition of assets of the former National Steel Corporation in 2003, he was named general manager of Great Lakes Works near Detroit. He assumed his most recent position, general manager-research, in 2005.

A native of Pleasant Hills, Pa., Harnack earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering in 1976 and a master's degree in business administration in 1982, both from the University of Pittsburgh. He is active in the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) and the International Iron and Steel Institute (IISI) and serves on the board of trustees of the Association for Iron and Steel Technology (AIST) Foundation. Harnack presently resides in Bethel Park, Pa., with his wife, Amy, and their two children.

Zeik, 45, assumes responsibility for U. S. Steel's research and development activities and will remain at the company's Research & Technology Center. Zeik joined U. S. Steel in 1991 as a senior research engineer in the metallography area. In 1994, he moved into the failure analysis group as an associate research consultant, and two years later, he was named research manager for the failure analysis and modeling and welding groups.

Zeik moved to the materials technology and modeling section in 1999, serving as research manager of the group until 2002, when he advanced to technical director. Zeik was named to his most recent position, director- process technology, in 2004, where he has overseen efforts to improve process efficiency and adapt existing processes to meet the demands presented by the production of new steel grades.

Zeik, a native of Glassport, Pa., completed both his undergraduate and graduate studies at Penn State, receiving a bachelor's degree in metallurgy in 1984 and a master's degree in metallurgical engineering in 1987. He also earned his doctorate in metals science and engineering from Penn State (with research being done at Iowa State University) in 1990.

Zeik is a member of the Association for Iron and Steel Technology (AIST). He previously severed as chairman of the Iron and Steel Society (ISS) Mechanical Working and Steel Processing Division and is a former board member for both ISS and AIST. Kevin presently resides in Irwin, Pa., with his wife, Patricia.

For more information about U. S. Steel, visit http://www.ussteel.com/.

SOURCE: United States Steel Corporation

CONTACT: John Armstrong, +1-412-433-6792, or Erin DiPietro,
+1-412-433-6845, both of United States Steel Corporation

Web site: http://www.ussteel.com/

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