OREANDA-NEWS. June 17, 2015. TimkenSteel (NYSE: TMST, timkensteel.com), a leader in customized alloy steel products and services, has earned two American Metal Market Awards for Steel Excellence, including "Steel Producer of the Year."

TimkenSteel also won in the "Best Innovation, Process" category for its new jumbo bloom vertical caster.

"We're honored by this recognition, which is the result of our employees' efforts in what was a remarkable year. Not only did we become an independent company, but we brought our new jumbo bloom vertical caster online," said Ward J. "Tim" Timken, Jr., chairman, CEO and president. "Our investment in the caster is part of our commitment to innovation, which gives us an ongoing competitive advantage in producing made-to-order steel that helps our customers solve their toughest challenges."

Winners of the sixth annual American Metal Market Awards for Steel Excellence were announced Tuesday evening at an awards dinner held in conjunction with the Steel Success Strategies XXX conference.

"The 15 winners represent the best companies in their respective segments of the global steel industry, embodying innovation and ingenuity," said Bristol Voss, editor-in-chief, AMM.  "We had a record number of nominations for this year's awards, and finalists represented world-class innovation in their respective fields.  To be named a winner truly signifies excellence in products, processes and people."

TimkenSteel'sjumbo bloom vertical caster is the biggest continuous vertical bloom caster in the world and the only one of its kind in North America. It improves TimkenSteel's efficiency and capacity to serve demand for large bars and seamless mechanical tubing.

The \\$200 million caster makes sections of special bar quality (SBQ) steel that measure up to 18 inches x 24 inches, referred to as "jumbo blooms," which are later rolled into bars and tubes. The first heat from the caster was produced last October.