Rankers

One important function of the American Iron & Steel Institute is grinding out publicity calculated to create good will for the steel industry. The Institute is somewhat handicapped by the fact that U. S. steelmen generally exhibit a singular lack of public-relations sense, particularly when they get anywhere near a rostrum. Nevertheless, the Institute's mimeographs continue to hum, last week turned out a batch of statistics showing that nine out of every ten steel executives rose from the ranks.

Replies to an Institute questionnaire were received from 176 chairmen, presidents and vice presidents in U. S. steel companies representing more than 95% of the industry. Three-fourths of these executives have spent their entire business lives in the steel business. Only 13 entered the industry in an executive position. Of the rest, nine got their start in sales departments; 19 as messenger boys; 25 as chem- ists or engineers; 26 as clerks or stenographers; 84 in the mills. Aggregate steel experience of the 176 executives: 5,664 years. How many were college graduates when they started at the bottom was not stated.

Better publicity for the steel industry last week was the announcement of Pittsburgh's Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp. that it planned a $35,000,000 expansion and improvement program. Fourth largest unit in the industry and the biggest family-owned .steel company in the U. S., Jones & Laughlin will spend $25,000,000 for a strip & sheet mill, enter that market for the first time. Though about $5,000,000 of a proposed $40,000,000 bond issue will be used for refunding, the balance represents one of the biggest bids for new money since the capital market started to revive.

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