MACSTEEL ANNOUNCES ANOTHER PHASE

OF EXPANSION AND MODERNIZATION

JACKSON, MICHIGAN: MACSTEEL is now underway with yet another phase of expansion designed specifically to increase capacity and further improve production efficiencies. This new investment of $9.9 million will bring MACSTEEL’s total shipping capacity up to a level of 740,000 tons per year, representing another 20,000 ton increase.

As noted by Mark Marcucci, President of MACSTEEL, “Market demand for our high quality engineered steel bar product continues to grow and we are taking every possible opportunity to satisfy this demand through improved production procedures and overall capacity increases. This particular phase of expansion will focus primarily on the Jackson, Michigan plant although improvements in rolling schedules will also benefit our Fort Smith, Arkansas operations as well.”

The new equipment will specifically benefit the rolling, handling and cutting of product in the smaller diameter ranges. There will also be some caster improvements to aid the overall throughput at the Jackson mill operations.

Over the last ten years alone, MACSTEEL has invested in excess $300 million in various phases of expansion and modernization. Commenting further, Mr. Marcucci said “We are definitely committed to our industry and to our customers. MACSTEEL is here for the long-run and we will continue our aggressive posture towards expansion and product enhancements that will maintain our position as a ‘worldclass’ supplier of engineered steel bars.”

MACSTEEL is part of the Vehicular Products Group of Quanex Corporation (NYSE: NX). Quanex, based in Houston, Texas, is an industry-leading manufacturer of engineered materials and components for the vehicular and building products markets. It operates 19 plants in the United States and has just celebrated its 75^th year in business. MACSTEEL is headquartered in Jackson, Michigan, with manufacturing facilities in Jackson, MI and Fort Smith, AR, and processing plants in Huntington, IN, and Pleasant Prairie, WI.

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