West Chester, Oh., USA - May 26, 2012, West Chester, Oh., USA - AK Steel announced new responsibilities for several executives, effective immediately, and the appointment of Maurice A. Reed as vice president.
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Albert E. Ferrara, Jr. has been named Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy and Investor Relations.
Mr. Ferrara joined AK Steel in June 2003 as Director, Strategic Planning and was named Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer later that year. He was named Senior Vice President, Finance and CFO in 2010.
Prior to joining AK Steel, Mr. Ferrara had more than 30 years of experience with U.S. Steel Corporation, USX Corporation, and the NS Group where he held various senior level positions.
Mr. Ferrara holds a BS degree in Finance, with Distinction, and a Juris Doctorate degree, both from the University of Virginia.
Roger K. Newport, has been named Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer.
Mr. Newport started his career with the company in 1985 in the accounting department. He advanced through a number of increasingly responsible finance, sales and marketing positions at the company’s corporate headquarters and Middletown Works.
Mr. Newport was named AK Steel’s Controller in 2001, adding responsibilities as Chief Accounting Officer in 2004. He was named Vice President, Business Planning and Development in 2010.
Mr. Newport is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati with a BBA degree in Accounting and he holds an MBA, with Honors, from Xavier University.
Keith J. Howell has been named Vice President, Operations.
Mr. Howell joined AK Steel in 1997 as Manager, Steelmaking at Middletown Works. He progressed through a number of operating positions at the company’s Middletown, Ashland and Butler plants before being named Director, Engineering and Raw Materials in 2009.
Mr. Howell was named Vice President, Carbon Steel Operations in 2010.
Prior to joining AK Steel, Mr. Howell had ten years of operating experience with U.S. Steel.
He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Metallurgical Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh and an MBA degree from The Ohio State University.
Kirk W. Reich has been named Vice President, Procurement and Supply Chain Management.
Mr. Reich began his career with the company in 1989 at Middletown Works.
He progressed through a number of increasingly responsible engineering and operations positions at the company’s Middletown, Rockport and Mansfield plants.
Mr. Reich was named General Manager, Middletown Works in 2006 and Vice President, Specialty Steel Operations in 2010.
He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from The Ohio State University and an MBA degree from the University of Notre Dame.
The company also announced, that Maurice A. Reed has been named to a newly-created position of Vice President, Engineering, Raw Materials and Energy.
Mr. Reed joined AK Steel in 1996 as a project manager following 12 years of engineering technology experience with the former National Steel Corporation.
Mr. Reed advanced through a number of increasingly responsible engineering, operations support, process research, and energy positions at the corporate headquarters, and the Rockport and Middletown plants before being named Director, Engineering, Raw Materials and Energy in 2011. ■