History In Steel
In 1977, three business partners started a Midwestern steel supply company in Central Indiana.
That Midwestern steel supply company became Westfield Steel and the Prine family has been at the helm since its inception.
Fred Prine was one of the founding business partners in 1977 with James Irwin and Onie Duffer. Irwin and Duffer already owned and operated a steel fabricating facility, which began selling steel to some of their customers. The steel sales grew into a larger part of their business, so they asked Fred to join them and set up a division. Within a few months, the steel sales became its own entity. Fred had over 12 years experience as an operations manager of a steel service center and fabrication company and as an outside salesman for a large steel service center based in Chicago.
Throughout the early years, Westfield Steel saw changes in the economy, its customer base, and its partnerships. In 1995, the company purchased Shaw Equipment Company in Terre Haute, Indiana. This acquisition opened new opportunities for Westfield Steel to grow in both customers and abilities. Prine became sole owner in 1999, after successfully buying out his partners interests. Over the next eight years and through two recessions, Prine grew and diversified the company.
A Passion For Growth
Prine always looked at Westfield Steel as a family business. Karyn Prine became the company’s first employee. She started by handling all office and inside sales needs. Her role grew into being a successful outside sales person, and one of the industry’s first female outside sales reps. She worked in this sales role for over thirty years. In 2007, their son, Fritz, joined the business as CFO and acting COO after a long employment with General Electric. The timing was bittersweet as the company and the industry peaked with record revenues just before the Great Recession. With the combined skills and experience of both Prine’s, they were able to steer the company through the historic difficulties of the economy and the industry. Westfield Steel came out of this with a stronger foundation and hunger to grow.
Starting in 2011, Fred Prine began the succession planning process for the next generation. Passing the business to the next generation remains a unique and challenging feat in today’s business world, but Prine felt it was critical to keep it in the family. Fritz Prine became the President of the company in October 2013, and Fred Prine continued as CEO and mentor.
At the end of 2016, the company purchased Remington Steel in Springfield, Ohio. This acquisition opened new opportunities for the company to grow in machining and manufacturing capabilities.
A Focus On Family
The summer of 2018 brought the company and the Prine family an unexpected blow with the surprise passing of Fred Prine. The strength and support of the Westfield Steel family helped both the family and the company grieve and move forward. The company is stronger from this experience and is poised to continue its vision and growth.
Westfield Steel is a steel supplier that provides products and services ranging from basic distribution to light manufacturing. Additionally, the company has extensive capabilities to further fabricate and add value to steel depending on the clients’ needs. The company has its headquarters, its main distribution center, and production facility in its namesake city, Westfield, with a facility in Terre Haute, Indiana and a facility in Springfield, Ohio. Westfield Steel Express is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Westfield Steel and is an authorized-for-hire carrier with the ability for on-time delivery of multiple resources.
“We use Westfield Steel as a tool to help us meet our goals.”
-Engineer for a manufacturer of electric motors
Talk to an Indiana steel supplier expert today for the right product, made the right way, delivered on time. Call 800.622.4984