Sure Steel Inc. focuses on the commercial, industrial, mining and military markets.

When Sure Steel Inc. was founded in 1992, owners Wayne Wilcox and Bruce Hoskisson set out to differentiate their company from the rest of the market by offering broader services, higher quality and a wider range of projects than its competition.

Today, Sure Steel says it is one of the few erection companies in the nation that can install both structural steel and pre-engineered structures. “It has allowed us to have flexibility,” says Rob Burby, director of business development. “Different sectors of the market have grown or waned, so we take advantage of the other side of the industry.” Sure Steel has established itself as a regional supplier of erection services that serves the western states out of Sandy, Utah. In the last few years, the company has also handled projects on the East Coast and the Midwest.

Sure Steel focuses on the commercial, industrial, mining and military markets, with commercial projects accounting for most its revenues. The company partners with structural fabricators throughout its geographic market to supply general contractors with a complete package.

The company changed ownership in 2005 as Wilcox and Hoskisson moved into other ventures. But Burby, who has been with Sure Steel for four years, says new President Jim Burwell and CEO Mark Carter are excited and looking to grow the company. “They recently increased the labor force by 20 percent, and they are looking to continue to grow,” Burby says.

Taking Tough Projects
Burby says Sure Steel has earned a reputation for taking on the toughest erection projects available. “Typically, if it is something everyone can do, we're not interested,” Burby says. “If it has demanding schedules, a high degree of complexity or it's tall - I love to do projects 100 to 150 feet up in the air - there's not a lot of competition in that market.”

Although Sure Steel did not set out to thrive on difficult projects, Burby says the company evolved into that position. He says it is a testament to Sure Steel's labor force - more than half of the field workers are from Idaho farms with a very strong work ethic.

“We had a project with more than 525,000 square feet of standing roof and installation,” Burby says. “We put the roof on in less than three weeks, and I imagine it normally would have taken twice as long. This has allowed us to be competitive in a wide geographic area.”

That speed and efficiency is another way Sure Steel has distinguished itself from the competition, according to Burby. He says more than 62 percent of the company's projects are completed ahead of the construction schedule.

For example, Sure Steel arrived for a project in Hawaii where the general contractor was two weeks behind schedule. Once the site was ready for Sure Steel, however, the company finished its scope of work two weeks ahead of schedule. “That bought the general contractor four weeks,” Burby says. “If we buy time in the schedule, it provides a cushion and a buffer for the other trades that might stumble along the way.”

Resource Shortages
With overseas pressure, Sure Steel is feeling the pinch of materials shortages. For steel, Burby says, China is dominating the market because of a 10 percent increase in construction there, which represents 100 percent of Canada and Mexico put together. “It is so large there, Americans find it difficult understanding that when there is one hiccup there, we feel a lot of pain,” he says. “This year, we're looking at China as an exporter of steel into the U.S. market, which will keep prices lower to make sure the supply of steel is readily available.”

In the meantime, Sure Steel is sure to stay in touch with its suppliers to keep a handle on market trends. As soon as the company earns a contract, the steel it will require is ordered so prices are locked in. “Some people have … waited to enter their orders, then they're locked into pricing not current in the marketplace,” Burby says. “We've been proactive in taking steps that pricing stays up to date and we stay on schedule.”

Labor Challenges
As the intermountain west region anticipates a construction boom this summer, Sure Steel anticipates a labor shortage with the expected increased demand for its services.

To prevent the possibility of being stretched too thin, Burby says, the company is continuously interviewing potential employees and has even raised its salaries to attract better candidates. “We've found that if we wait 'til the last minute, people are not available,” Burby says. “We also found that by increasing the salary, we are getting much better quality and caliber of candidate applying. “If we get people at the same old pay rate, we're not going to get the same caliber of individuals as we did three or four years ago.”

Finding New Talent
When Sure Steel seeks new employees, it looks for those welders with experience who enjoy traveling, are hard workers and are not afraid of heights.

“We're also looking for those that want to be safe,” Burby says. “There is a concern in our industry that ironworkers are the macho of the macho, so we make sure our people perform work safely to benefit everybody.”

The new ownership has brought an attitude that focuses on internal development, as well. Burby explains there is a plan in place to bring individuals up through the ranks into project and office management, and Sure Steel now has extensive safety training and skill development programs.

Recent Projects
Sure Steel recently erected steel for a clinker storage facility for a CEMEX cement plant. The project calls for a 228-foot clear span, 390 feet in length and 100 feet high. The roof has proven to be the most challenging aspect of the project. The A-framed building with its 9:12 roof pitch, which is considerably steeper than usual for an industrial building, required Sure Steel to build special equipment to work safely on such a steep roof while installing the roof cladding.

The roof also has approximately 112,000 square feet of metal roof panels also installed by Sure Steel. The company's scope of work was completed several weeks ahead of schedule, according to Burby, and cost for the work was more than $3 million.

Sure Steel also erected a 525,000-square-foot pre-engineered Do It Best distribution center in Mesquite, Nev. The company installed more than 50,000 square feet of MR-24 standing seam roof and insulation per day. Steel erection began in March 2005 and was completed ahead of schedule.

Future Plans
Sure Steel is planning to expand its capabilities to go after smaller contracts that have more demands than larger ones. “We will set up a separate division for the small building project market,” Burby says. “One advantage that it offers to general contractors is we become more of a one-stop shop for whatever steel erection is needed. It is an advantage to Sure Steel because we can bring in more smaller projects as larger ones slide.”