PITTSBURGH, Nov. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- United States Steel Corporation
(NYSE: X) Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John P. Surma today announced
several executive-level leadership changes. Vice President-Supply Chain &
Customer Service John C. Price has elected to retire effective Nov. 30, 2009,
after 40 years of service with the company. Anton Lukac, who currently serves
as vice president-engineering & technology, will assume Price's position, and
Anthony R. Bridge, who is currently vice president-operations, will succeed
Lukac.
"The extensive and varied operations experiences John had throughout his
distinguished career served our company well during times of important change
and ultimately enabled him to be an exceptional leader for our supply chain
functions since his appointment to that position in 2008," said Surma. "As a
third generation U. S. Steel employee, John exhibited a strong sense of
commitment to our company throughout his 40-year career, and we wish him and
his family all the best in his retirement."
Price, 62, and a native of Pittsburgh, started his career with the company in
1969 as an operations trainee at Fairless Works near Philadelphia. From 1969
to 1991, he advanced through increasingly responsible positions in tin mill
operations, metallurgical engineering and quality assurance at Fairless Works,
corporate headquarters, Mon Valley Works' Irvin Plant and Gary Works.
In 1991, Price was named division manager of sheet products at Mon Valley
Works, and two years later transferred to headquarters as district
manager-customer technical services, East. He returned to Gary Works in 1994
to serve as manager of quality assurance and manager of business services,
respectively, before advancing to plant manager of finishing operations in
1996. He returned to Pittsburgh headquarters as general manager-tin products
in 1997.
Following the acquisition of National Steel in May 2003, Price was named
general manager of the Midwest Plant and led the successful integration of
that facility. In 2005, he was named general manager-business planning. He
was appointed vice president-supply chain in March 2008 and added
responsibility for customer service in April 2009.
Price graduated from Lafayette College in Easton, Pa., in 1969 with a
bachelor's degree in metallurgical engineering.
In his new position, Lukac, 49, will be responsible for the company's business
planning, logistics services, processed products and customer service
organizations. Lukac will report to Senior Vice President-North American Flat
Roll Operations Michael S. Williams.
"Anton's detailed knowledge of our operations - gained during a career that
includes plant management and executive oversight of research and engineering
activities - make him a solid choice to fill this important role," Surma
explained.
Lukac began his steelmaking career at Slovak steelmaker VSZ a.s. in 1982 as a
technologist in the cold rolling mill. Over the next 16 years, he progressed
through increasingly responsible positions in a variety of departments,
eventually serving as vice president of technology for VSZ.
When U. S. Steel Kosice (USSK) was created in November 2000, Lukac was named
vice president of strategic implementation and reported directly to USSK's
president. In that position, he was responsible for USSK's pipe and radiator
operations while managing 18 USSK domestic and foreign subsidiaries and
supporting regional development through USSK's Economic Development Center.
In July 2003, Lukac was appointed plant manager of U. S. Steel's Clairton
Plant, a coke making facility in Clairton, Pa. In December 2006, he advanced
to plant manager of Mon Valley Works' Edgar Thomson Plant, a primary
steelmaking facility in Braddock, Pa. He was named general manager-Mon Valley
Works in January 2007 with responsibility for operations at all four Mon
Valley Works facilities: the Clairton Plant; the Edgar Thomson Plant; the
Irvin Plant (finishing) in West Mifflin, Pa.; and the Fairless Plant
(galvanizing) near Philadelphia. Lukac was appointed to his most recent
position in March 2008.
Lukac, who is a native of Martin in the Slovak Republic, graduated from
Technical University in Kosice, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering in 1982.
Bridge, 55, will assume executive responsibility for research and development
activities at the company's Research and Technology Center in Munhall, Pa.,
Automotive Center in Troy, Mich., and USSE Research in Kosice, Slovakia. He
will also oversee engineering; coke battery assessment, reliability and
rehabilitation; and blast furnace engineering and technology activities across
the company. He will report to Executive Vice President & Chief Operating
Officer John H. Goodish.
"We are confident that Tony's operations experience coupled with his previous
leadership of our research and engineering disciplines will aid our efforts to
remain a leader in steel process and product development," Surma noted.
Before joining U. S. Steel in 1998 as area manager of the former No. 13 blast
furnace at Gary Works in Gary, Ind., Bridge spent 19 years at Inland Steel in
East Chicago, Ind., and three years at Rouge Steel in Dearborn, Mich. He
advanced to division manager of iron producing at Gary Works in 1999 and to
plant manager of primary operations in 2001.
In 2003, Bridge transferred to Pittsburgh headquarters when he was named
managing director-blast furnace engineering & technology. He was appointed
vice president-engineering & technology in 2005; vice president-operations,
East in March 2008; and vice president-operations in April 2009.
Bridge, from Gary, Ind., earned a bachelor's degree in industrial management
from Purdue University's Krannert Business School in Lafayette, Ind., in 1976;
a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Purdue University at its
Calumet Campus in Hammond, Ind., in 1991; and a master's degree in business
from Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Ind., in 2004.
Bridge currently serves as president of the Association for Iron and Steel
Technology.
For more information about U. S. Steel, visit www.ussteel.com.
SOURCE United States Steel Corporation
Erin DiPietro, +1-412-433-6845, or Courtney Boone, +1-412-433-6791, both of
United States Steel Corporation
