Pacific Steel Ltd
Date established
1958
Date closed
1993
History
Pacific Steel Ltd was commissioned in 1962
Successor: Sims Pacific Steel Ltd
PACIFC STEEL
1958 - 1993
Pacific Steel was New Zealand's first steelworks. The raw material used was local scrap made available to meet production requirements. The merchant bar rolling mill produced engineering and reinforcing rounds, light angles, flats and channels.
From 1955 Fletcher Holdings Ltd had been actively studied the viability of basing a steelworks on scrap metal together with the potential of iron sand development.
In 1958 the operating company came into existence with an equity holding of 2.09 million pounds, 60 percent was held by New Zealand interests and 40 percent by UK steel making group of Stewarts & Lloyds, GKN and Colville.
In 1959, largely through the initiative of Sir James Fletcher, Pacific Steel Limited was established and construction started on a 50 acre site in Favona Road, Otahuhu. The mill was designed to produce a maximum of 120,000 tons per year.
Fletchers had played a leading role in initiating the project, procuring the land, building the plant and investing substantially in the new company.
The directors were; JC Fletcher (chairman), KC Campbell, JG Gowan, BR Law, RC McDonald, J Fraser McLean, & Dr JS Watts (Fletchers). LM Lonsdale-Cooper was General manager and A Hogg Secretary. Arthur Brown in charge of the rolling mill, and Tony Mason the melting shop.
Pacific Steel was commissioned in May 1962.
Using imported steel ingots from Australia, the first commercial bar ingots were produced on March 10 1962. Two months later the steel plant was completed and commissioned.
In 1969 new rod mill was commissioned to roll wire rod for GKN’s wire drawing plant.
In 1979 Pacific Steel upgraded significantly by converting its ignot casting into a more efficient process of Continuous casting by installing a three strand Rokop casting machine.
In 1980 Pacific Steel established a Detinning Plant, and began processing used tin cans and the off-cuts from tin can manufacturers.
In 1981 Pacific Steel became part of the Manufacturing & Merchandising Sector after the establishment of Fletcher Challenge Ltd.
1986 Pacific Steel is part of the Fletcher Challenge Building division and contracts 90 percent of their scrap metal requirements from Sims Pacific Metals, the scrap is then recycled into wire rod, reinforcing and merchant bar products.
1987 The second bar mill was commissioned having an annual capacity of some 300,000 tonnes throughput of 80tph.
1988 Pacific Steel wholly owned by Fletcher Challenge Ltd and is part of the Fletcher Challenge Steel Sector
1990 Pacific Steel imports 5000 flat iron from the BHP Whyalla plant in Australia, to be used in the production process at its Auckland plant.
1991 Within the structure of Fletcher Challenge Ltd, Pacific Steel is part of the steel sector of Building Materials within the Building Materials & Construction Group.
1992 Within the structure of Fletcher Challenge Ltd, Pacific Steel is part of the steel sector of Building Materials within the Building Industries Group.
1993 Fletcher Challenge share split into two divisions the Forestry Share Division, & the Ordinary Share Division which includes energy, building & paper sectors. The steel sector is part of the Building Materials & Construction Group within the Building Division.
1996 Re-organisation of Fletcher Challenge Ordinary Division, created three new targeted shares Fletcher Challenge Building, Fletcher Challenge Paper, Fletcher Challenge Energy. The re-organisation resulted in Fletcher Challenge having four listed equity shares and Fletcher Challenge Building Share represented the Groups predominantly New Zealand based building materials and construction activities
2001 On the 23 March 2001 Building Division became a stand-alone publicly listed
entity named Fletcher Building
Successor: Sims Pacific Steel Ltd
PACIFC STEEL
1958 - 1993
Pacific Steel was New Zealand's first steelworks. The raw material used was local scrap made available to meet production requirements. The merchant bar rolling mill produced engineering and reinforcing rounds, light angles, flats and channels.
From 1955 Fletcher Holdings Ltd had been actively studied the viability of basing a steelworks on scrap metal together with the potential of iron sand development.
In 1958 the operating company came into existence with an equity holding of 2.09 million pounds, 60 percent was held by New Zealand interests and 40 percent by UK steel making group of Stewarts & Lloyds, GKN and Colville.
In 1959, largely through the initiative of Sir James Fletcher, Pacific Steel Limited was established and construction started on a 50 acre site in Favona Road, Otahuhu. The mill was designed to produce a maximum of 120,000 tons per year.
Fletchers had played a leading role in initiating the project, procuring the land, building the plant and investing substantially in the new company.
The directors were; JC Fletcher (chairman), KC Campbell, JG Gowan, BR Law, RC McDonald, J Fraser McLean, & Dr JS Watts (Fletchers). LM Lonsdale-Cooper was General manager and A Hogg Secretary. Arthur Brown in charge of the rolling mill, and Tony Mason the melting shop.
Pacific Steel was commissioned in May 1962.
Using imported steel ingots from Australia, the first commercial bar ingots were produced on March 10 1962. Two months later the steel plant was completed and commissioned.
In 1969 new rod mill was commissioned to roll wire rod for GKN’s wire drawing plant.
In 1979 Pacific Steel upgraded significantly by converting its ignot casting into a more efficient process of Continuous casting by installing a three strand Rokop casting machine.
In 1980 Pacific Steel established a Detinning Plant, and began processing used tin cans and the off-cuts from tin can manufacturers.
In 1981 Pacific Steel became part of the Manufacturing & Merchandising Sector after the establishment of Fletcher Challenge Ltd.
1986 Pacific Steel is part of the Fletcher Challenge Building division and contracts 90 percent of their scrap metal requirements from Sims Pacific Metals, the scrap is then recycled into wire rod, reinforcing and merchant bar products.
1987 The second bar mill was commissioned having an annual capacity of some 300,000 tonnes throughput of 80tph.
1988 Pacific Steel wholly owned by Fletcher Challenge Ltd and is part of the Fletcher Challenge Steel Sector
1990 Pacific Steel imports 5000 flat iron from the BHP Whyalla plant in Australia, to be used in the production process at its Auckland plant.
1991 Within the structure of Fletcher Challenge Ltd, Pacific Steel is part of the steel sector of Building Materials within the Building Materials & Construction Group.
1992 Within the structure of Fletcher Challenge Ltd, Pacific Steel is part of the steel sector of Building Materials within the Building Industries Group.
1993 Fletcher Challenge share split into two divisions the Forestry Share Division, & the Ordinary Share Division which includes energy, building & paper sectors. The steel sector is part of the Building Materials & Construction Group within the Building Division.
1996 Re-organisation of Fletcher Challenge Ordinary Division, created three new targeted shares Fletcher Challenge Building, Fletcher Challenge Paper, Fletcher Challenge Energy. The re-organisation resulted in Fletcher Challenge having four listed equity shares and Fletcher Challenge Building Share represented the Groups predominantly New Zealand based building materials and construction activities
2001 On the 23 March 2001 Building Division became a stand-alone publicly listed
entity named Fletcher Building
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