Metal Service Centers NAICS 423510

May 23, 2025 - MCN’s Equipment Buyers’ Guide

• Metal service centers in the market for new equipment will want to consult Metal Center News’ (MCN) new list of the Top 10 equipment brands as chosen by its readers. Published in May, MCN’s annual Top Brands survey ranks the top three providers in five categories: Cutting: TRUMPF, Mazak Optonics, Hypertherm Associates; Coil Processing: Red Bud Industries, Fagor Arrasate, ANDRITZ; Sawing: HYDMECH, Amada Machinery America, Cosen Saws; Material Handling: Steel Storage Systems, Hyster, Bushman Equipment; and Software: Invera, Enmark Systems, OpenTrac. MCN notes that while the metals distribution market has cooled over the past year and a half, the market for top-notch equipment hasn’t, especially given distributors' increasing reliance on technologically advanced equipment and intuitive machinery to help mitigate the industry’s labor shortage.
• To avoid stiff tariffs on imported metals and benefit from the reliability and timeliness offered by shorter supply chains, more companies are considering sourcing from US-based mills, according to metals service center Mead Metals. Makers of metal products who reshore their supply chains can benefit from relationships with local mills and service centers that offer just-in-time shipping and proximity advantages that reduce inventory, logistics costs, and lead times. But with demand for local suppliers rising, purchasing managers could see tight availability for certain metals, underscoring the need for proactive sourcing and flexible inventory strategies, according to Mead Metals. As for tariffs, a 2019 Federal Reserve study found that while tariffs imposed by the first Trump administration increased US steel production, higher input costs from tariffs reduced manufacturing jobs, relative to what it would have been without tariffs, and raised production costs for metal-based goods.

• The construction sector, an important customer industry for metal service centers, is looking to recent interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve to spur demand for new construction, Metal Service Center (MSC) reports. In an examination of why the US construction sector has fared as well as it has in the recent hostile interest rate environment, MSC consulted industry experts who generally agree 2025 will bring improvement. Longer term, the US steel industry’s focus on decarbonization and sustainability should be a plus. “We’re an important part of the sustainability solution, not part of the problem,” Brian Raff, VP Sustainability and Government Relations for the American Institute for Steel Construction, told MSC. A source of concern however is the Trump administration’s threat to hike tariffs, which, if realized, would cause imports to become more expensive and could encourage domestic manufacturers to raise their prices in tandem with tariffs.
• Employment by metal service centers grew 7% in March compared to a year ago, while average wages at metal and mineral (except petroleum) merchant wholesalers fell 4.6% over the same period to $28.17 per hour, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Sales for metals and minerals distributors fell 9.5% year over year in February and were down 4.1% from January, according to the Census Bureau. Over roughly the past three years, industry sales have declined by about 37%. Looking ahead, sales for the US metal service centers industry are forecast to grow at a 3% compounded annual rate from 2025 to 2029, slower than the growth of the overall