HOUSTON-BASED STEEL DISTRIBUTION AND MANUFACTURING COMPANY COMES FULL CIRCLE WITH PURCHASE OF THE PILING DIVISION AT 100-YEAR-OLD STEEL DISTRIBUTOR
HOUSTON – (September 27, 2021) – JD Fields & Company, a subsidiary of the Fields Companies, today announced it acquired Pittsburg-based LB Foster Piling Products Division in a transaction valued at $XX million. The deal to purchase a portion of the oldest steel piling company in the United States will significantly increase capacity and production of JD Fields & Company as a steel piling manufacturer, fabricator, and distributor for deep foundation and geostructural products. In a major move that will signal a sweeping impact on the steel industry, it provides JD Fields with LB Foster Piling Division’s current inventory and customer backlog in a move that immediately expands the 36-year-old company’s reach and market share.
The purchase includes the LB Foster steel yard in Northern California as well as the piling facility adjacent to the Gerdau Steel Mill campus in Petersburg, Virginia that produces wide flange beams, H-piling, and PZC sheet piling along with H-piling and flat sheets at its mill in Midlothian, Texas. The agreement will give the Houston-based company a wide variety of Gerdau steel products for the domestic piling market, making JD Fields a preferred Gerdau distributor of PZC and PS Sheet Piling in the U.S.
“This is a major step towards achieving our goal of becoming the top-rated domestic steel piling distributor and manufacturer in North America,” said Jay Fields, President and Chief Operating Officer of JD Fields & Company and Chief Executive Officer at the Fields Companies. “The LB Foster piling acquisition will exponentially increase our market share and product offerings just as the country embarks on the massive undertaking of rebuilding our civil and maritime infrastructure. JD Fields is perfectly positioned to service the untold number of projects that will soon need a reliable supply of homegrown steel piling products.”
The move also complements the anticipated addition of the new Fields Companies subsidiary JDF-HDM Spiralweld – a state-of-the-art spiralweld mill currently rising in East Houston that will manufacture tubular products for transportation, utility, marine and infrastructure foundation projects and related specialty structural steel products. Together, the LB Foster deal and JDF-HDM Spiralweld will give JD Fields the ability to streamline the production and distribution of American-made steel products that can efficiently serve domestic civil projects as the country reinvests in its aging infrastructure.
The purchase of LB Foster Piling Division marks a homecoming of sorts for JD Fields & Company founder Jerry Fields, who spent 17 years rising through the ranks to become president of the pipe division at the storied firm before leaving with three other LB Foster executives to start his own eponymous steel supply company in 1985. Since that time, JD Fields has grown into a leading international supplier and distributor of API line pipe for oil & gas applications and piling systems for heavy civil, port/marine projects.
“It feels a little bit like déjà vu,” remarked the elder Fields. He added, “Jay is taking a division we’ve had since we first incorporated JD Fields and building it up into a major pile and equipment business. It thrills me to witness the evolution and diversification of the company under Jay’s leadership, and I couldn’t be prouder of him and of all the dedicated employees at JD Fields.”
The announcement comes at a time of tremendous growth for the Fields Companies, the parent company to JD Fields & Company, Inc., Alameda Pipe & Fab, JDF-HDM Spiralweld, and JDF Equipment as well as Bear Dean Capital, LLC – an investment company focused on real estate, hospitality, and production – and Foxgate Capital, a real estate private equity fund.
“Supply chain, shipping bottlenecks, and rising freight costs are changing the dynamics of our domestic piling industry, and we see the U.S. piling market shifting towards ‘Buy American’ to ensure future availability, deliveries and costs.” said Dean Abbondanza, Director of Engineering at JD Fields & Company. He added, “The acquisition of the LB Foster Piling Division is a valuable piece of our domestic growth strategy. The stocking/fabrication yard located adjacent to the Gerdau Petersburg, Virginia campus strategically places us as a full-service domestic foundation systems supplier. Coupled with our West Coast Alameda operations and the Houston steel pipe manufacturing/fabrication facility, the JD Fields geostructural distribution network will expand to service every corner of the country.”
ABOUT JD FIELDS
For over 35 years, JD Fields & Company, Inc. has established a reputation as a leading vendor providing application and technical expertise for critical civil infrastructure materials. The company’s recent acquisitions and joint ventures represent evolutionary steps toward vertical integration as a steel pile manufacturer following the purchases of LB Foster Piling Division and Alameda Pipe & Fab Company in Chowchilla, California. The planned 2022 opening of JDF-HDM Spiralweld Mill will further increase the company’s ability to manufacture and distribute American made niche steel products throughout the United States. For more information, please visit https://www.jdfields.com.
ABOUT THE FIELDS COMPANIES
The Fields Companies is the offspring of JD Fields & Company, Inc. – a leading global steel supplier-turned-manufacturer – created by CEO Jay Fields as the parent organization to JD Fields and a growing number of emerging businesses specializing in manufacturing, private equity investment and real estate development. Since establishing a reputation as a technical leader for essential civil infrastructure materials for over 35 years, JD Fields is embarking on its current evolutionary path to vertical integration as a manufacturer of steel foundation and geostructural products for a next-generation roster of companies. For more information, please visit https://www.thefieldscos.com.
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