Michigan Seamless Tube, LLC (MST) understands that a profitable business is built on satisfied clients. Ted Fairley, Vice President of Sales & Marketing at MST explains, “The thing that makes us different in the industry is our attitude toward our customers. Everyone here understands that our customers are number one, and that without happy customers, we won’t have jobs.”

Since 1927, MST has been manufacturing cold-drawn seamless tubular products for the mechanical and pressure tubing industries, providing tube and pipe for industrial applications as varied as oil and gas to boiler tubing and heat exchangers. MST was bought by Optima International in 2008 and these new owners have added to MST’s legacy of quality products by investing in new equipment and taking an increased focus on customer care.

“MST’s strength is its workforce that works together to focus on the customer and consistently provide excellent products on time,” says Ted Fairley, Vice President of Sales & Marketing at MST.

On Time Every Time

MST has a reputation for its consistent on time delivery, not just for rush jobs but also for normal priority orders. The company’s tagline “It’s About Time” emphasizes this commitment to providing timely service to all clients.

“We are known for our speed, not just domestically, but also globally as the one seamless tube mill, that when you need something in a hurry, we will get it to you in a hurry,” explains Fairley.

Last year from its single manufacturing facility in South Lyon, Michigan,MST had 96.1 percent of all of its orders delivered on time to clients whose locations include North America, Mexico, Europe, and Asia. MST has a diverse client base, which ensures that the company doesn’t depend on a limited number of companies for a majority of its sales volume.

A Good Place To Work

MST has no trouble attracting and retaining its employees due to its positive work environment, steady business growth and advantageous benefits like the successful profit-sharing plan. This profit sharing plan is for all employees and is based on the company meeting certain goals and standards related to earnings, safety performance, yield, remakes, variable operating expenses, on time delivery performance and converting margin.

“Throughout the company, it’s well known that everyone gets the same percentage of their annual wages from that profit-sharing pool, all the way from the shop floor to Vice Presidents. These past few years, the payoff has added quite a large portion to people’s income as all of the employees have become invested in the financial success of the company,” explains Fairley.

Fairley noted that MST has reached its largest number of employees with 11 new hires in the past eight months bringing the total number of employees up to 260. MST works with the Michigan Works! Association to find new hires and has found this to be an expedient way to match up employees with their work culture. Many MST employees represent multiple generations of families -fathers, mothers, uncles, sons, and daughters - who decided to join the MST team after hearing and seeing how well their family members are taken care of by the company.

“It’s a kind of testament when you have a company with a generational workforce-- that says that we are doing something right,” says Fairley.

Emphasizing Safety

MST has a strict code of safety for its employees but enforces it via personal and peer accountability. The safety program emphasizes personal responsibility, stressing that it’s up to each employee to ensure his or her own safety. Employees realize that besides providing personal benefits, increased safety also creates increased productivity which generates increased financial benefits. Employees receive safety training yearly and also use personal protective equipment daily. The management style at MST is very open and interactive with management maintaining daily conversation with shop floor employees and supervisors.

In addition to encouraging on-the-job safety, MST’s Outside the Gate program promotes safety outside of the workplace. According to Fairley, statistics show that only five percent of accidents occur at the workplace.

“So we stress employees being safe here and also outside the gate. If we can get people to buy into this concept, then it’s not only good for our company but also for their families,” says Fairley.

Investing in the Future

MST is currently in the process of having $25-40 million invested in a two-step expansion process that includes new and upgraded equipment. Recent progress on this expansion includes a new Quench & Temper line that is being installed -early this year and is expected to be operational by late Spring of 2012.

MST also recently received approval to add a 10,000 square –foot building -which will house - a new pickle- line and wastewater treatment equipment. This six million dollar investment will “debottleneck the pickling operation…and provide 12 percent operation capacity expansion,” says Fairley.

“All of these investments are geared toward our future and where we want to be in three to five  years so that we can be ready for the next 10 to 20 years. Our plan is to increase steadily and significantly,” Fairley concludes.