Above: Ranger Steel expanded its inventory of light-gauge product in 2025 to support more service center customers.
August, 2026- Ranger Steel acquired Nance Steel Sales in early 2024, expanding the reach of the Houston-based business from Los Angeles to Pennsylvania and everywhere in between. Last year, the combined company—known for stocking mid-to-heavy plate—added more light-gauge product. Personnel promotions and new hires have rounded out changes to the business.
The result, as Ranger Steel CEO Claus Gundlach explains, is more support to service centers and marked growth. “In the second full year of the acquisition, we are ahead of our financial projections and we’ve increased our customer roster significantly.”
A BIG MIDSECTION
Ranger Steel was founded in 1958 by Roy Whitley. Roy and his son, Ron, expanded the company beyond Houston by adding locations in Fort Worth, Tulsa and the Los Angeles Basin. When Gundlach assumed the role of CEO after Ron Whitley died in 2019, a plan was put into place to grow the business in the Midwest—in the industrial strongholds of North America.
Detroit-based Nance Steel Sales was a perfect fit. Nance Steel Sales has locations in Houston as well as Detroit, Chicago and near Pittsburgh. “Ranger Steel has historically had customers that are heavy in oil and gas. Nance Steel Sales has historically supported mold manufacturers [for automotive, aerospace and others] as well as customers in the heavy machinery sectors,” Gundlach notes. “With our expanded U.S. footprint, Ranger Steel and Nance Steel Sales are able to cover the midsection of the country where significant steel consumption takes place.”
FRESH FACES
When Joel Elbaum, former majority owner of Nance Steel Sales, retired this past January, Steve Stine was promoted to general manager. A longtime employee at Nance Steel Sales, Stine says he’s enjoying the expanded responsibility. “I’m still handling my accounts, while also managing the sales team east of the Mississippi. A big part of my job is managing the broader inventory of product at our Midwest locations,” Stine explains.
A broader range of inventory on site has helped Ranger Steel grow its customer base by 35 to 40 percent.
With seven stocking locations, the company’s largest inventory is at its Houston yard.
The sales team reporting to Stine includes two new representatives: one hired for a new sales office in Alliance, Ohio, and the other for the pending Chicago sales office. The merged company plans to open a sales office in Chicago in early 2027. In the interim, the new hire is learning the ropes from Stine, working out of Detroit. Neither hire has steel experience, so they are learning the business— and the Ranger/Nance culture—from the ground up.
“Will Farnfield and Cooper Briceland are both very savvy with leveraging technology to make first connections with new prospects. Having them on our team is a great blend. They bring a lot of energy and knowledge to the team along with an eagerness to learn the industry,” says Stine.
The new employees are reaching out to past Nance Steel Sales customers, service centers and end users. Growing private investments in energy, data centers and other infrastructure improvements are prime opportunities in the Midwest.
CLAUS GUNDLACH
FAST TURNAROUND
Ranger Steel’s sweet spot in the market has been midrange carbon steel plate (3/16 to 4 inches thick) while Nance Steel Sales has built a reputation in the heavy carbon plate range (3 to 24 inches thick). Last year, the business doubled down on its stocking of lightgauge plate from 5/16 to 4 inches thick.
“With the fuller range of plate size stocked across the Ranger and Nance facilities, we are able to approach a new customer market,” Gundlach says. Specifically, this means small to midsize service centers and small fabricators that Farnfield and Briceland are prospecting. “These customers need materials quickly. And collectively, they need a wide range of sizes and grades. Ranger Steel and Nance Steel Sales are able to meet all these needs,” notes Gundlach.
The wider product offering and footprint are working. “We expanded our customer base by 35 to 40 percent when we increased our size range,” he reports. “We have the product range and inventory to deliver on time for these customers, and we are able to offer financing options as well,” Gundlach says, citing the flexibility the company has established to support steel distributors.
In January 2026, Steve Stine ascended to the general manager post at Nance Steel Sales.
A FAMILY CULTURE
Gundlach and Stine have each seen a lot of changes in the plate business over the past few decades, citing longer mill lead times, tighter availability and higher prices. “These are opportunities for our team to excel because of our vast inventory. With our product size and grade range, we’ve positioned ourselves to really support our current and new customers in this dynamic market,” notes Stine.
Despite such changes in the steel industry, a consistent culture anchors the business. Both Ranger Steel and Nance Steel Sales have a legacy of family ownership, and that tightknit culture still permeates the combined business. The feeling of family extends to customers as well.
“We are like a family, and the success of the business depends on our employees,” Gundlach notes. “We can manage our inventory efficiently, strategically site our product, add sales personnel and stock a broad range of material. But at the end of the day, we succeed when we meet and exceed our customer expectations, and that takes a team.”
Nance Steel Sales, 800/521-5937, nancesteel.com
Ranger Steel, 800/231-5014, rangersteel.com
