Above: JM Steel runs multiple Braner lines; the newest one is compact and maintenance friendly.
August, 2026- Founded in 2000 and based in Huger, South Carolina, JM Steel has been on a growth trajectory since the beginning, most recently placing additional metal processing capacity into its Sinton, Texas, plant.
Jake Henke, plant superintendent, says the 173,000-square-foot Sinton plant employs 92 hourly production workers and 14 salaried workers. “We run two shifts five days per week.” Depending on order rates, “we do 12-hour shifts and sometimes 10 hours.”
JM Steel opened the Texas facility in 2021 “because we saw an opportunity to put processing capacity closer to both the steel source and our customers. Being in Sinton allows us to improve lead times, react faster to customer needs and reduce transportation and handling throughout the supply chain. It also positions us to continue expanding our processing capabilities while supporting growth across Texas and surrounding markets.”
The company’s primary customer base is solar equipment manufacturers. “We slit galvanized steel and produce tube in house, then perform additional processing to create a finished product,” Henke explains. Tube lengths range from 21 to 37 feet depending on customer requirements. “We add value through secondary operations, including swaging and drilling customer-specific hole patterns. Our customers are looking for consistent quality, reliable delivery and a product that arrives ready for the next step in their operation.”
After a month-long startup, the new slitter was fully functional, hitting targeted numbers.
GROWTH MARKET
In the field, customers swag the tubes together. Tube swaging is a cold-forming process that alters the diameter of a tube or pipe using dies or hydraulic force. Each of the drilled holes support brackets.
The solar panels are then attached to the brackets. “This is a growth market,” and JM Steel’s business with the solar market has “increased sevenfold in five years,” says Henke. The company added three metal processing lines over that period. The newest is a Braner USA slitting line.
In addition, the company added two drill lines—one bought off the shelf and a second one that “is fully automated. Our sister company, JennMar Automation, designed and built it. Henke notes, “We produce 22,000 tubes per week.”
JM Steel already has a another brand’s slitting line in Sinton, which Henke says performs well on heavier gauge material. “We needed additional capacity to cover a lighter gauge range. One of the qualities of the new Braner line is the wide range of applications: “From narrow slitting with high cut counts to breaking material for weight requirements,” says Henke. “That flexibility allows us to respond to changing customer demand without sacrificing efficiency.
“JM has multiple Braner lines,” he continues, “so we were already familiar with their equipment.” The new line is compact and maintenance friendly because there is ready access to the arbors and slitting heads.
“This line started up January 2026 and is performing well without any hiccups.” Henke says startup took about a month, after which it was “fully functional, hitting targeted numbers.”
LOOP THE LOOP
One of the unique features of the new Braner line at JM Steel is a loop doubler, installed above the facility’s 36-foot-deep looping pit. Kyle Klein, director of sales for Braner, explains, “it’s not just a deep looping pit.
We provided a loop doubler that allows for two loops in the looping pit, essentially making it twice as deep.”
A loop doubler provides twice as much strip accumulation as a traditional single-loop design, Klein says. “The required pit depth is driven by the product mix and the amount of strip accumulation needed. When you’re processing lighter gauge material at high speeds, the footage contained in a coil increases dramatically, so additional accumulation becomes very important.”
The deeper, double-loop configuration provides the accumulation necessary to support JM Steel’s current operating range while also providing flexibility for future production requirements. The loop doubler also helps maintain stable strip tension throughout the slitting process, “which is critical when you’re processing everything from lighter gauge material to higher-strength steels.”
PROCESS KNOWLEDGE
Training JM Steel’s operators for the new Braner slitter “was pretty simple,” Henke says, “because our people have experience.” In addition, “Braner has technicians with 40 years’ experience running machinery. They come in with quite a bit of knowledge.
“The machine itself came with a lot of baselines for different types of coils.” The operator can select a typical job “and the machine tells him where everything [each knife and any other parameter] needs to be. The baseline settings are accurate.”
According to Klein, “One of the advantages of a Braner line is the amount of process knowledge that’s built into the controls. When Jake refers to baselines, he’s talking about proven starting setup parameters that Braner has developed through decades of processing steel. Rather than starting from scratch every time a new job comes in, the operator begins with known parameters and can make adjustments from there, if needed,” Klein says.
This philosophy extends beyond the slitter itself. JM Steel’s line includes a Braner-built double-cluster precision leveler, which uses the same concept. “The leveler controls can also utilize stored settings based on material type, gauge and yield strength, giving the operator a proven starting point rather than relying entirely on trial and error,” says Klein.
These baselines shorten the learning curve for operators and helps produce more consistent results from coil to coil. “At the end of the day, that’s really what these baseline settings are all about capturing years of processing experience and making it available to the operator every time they run a job, whether it’s a new or well-seasoned operator.”
Braner builds its process knowledge into the slitter’s controls.
JM Steel has a double looping pit to handle light-gauge material.
PACKAGING
The JM Steel project includes an automated packaging system that was designed to work together with the slitter as a complete material handling solution, according to Klein.
“Once the slit coils leave the recoiler, they move directly into an automated packaging line capable of handling slit coils up to 15,000 pounds. The system automatically transfers, conveys, manipulates, stacks, sorts and weighs coils with minimal operator involvement,” he says.
The packaging system includes an automatic down-ender, coil conveyors, coil banding station, automatic stacker, six-position sorting turntable, weigh scale conveyor and integrated controls. “Each piece of equipment is designed to move coils efficiently from the slitting operation through packaging and shipment preparation,” Klein says.
“One of the biggest benefits is the reduction in manual material handling. Instead of repeatedly using overhead cranes and forklifts to move individual coils, the packaging system automatically routes coils through the process.” Klein says this improves safety, reduces manual labor requirements, minimizes product damage and increases overall throughput.
“As labor availability continues to be a challenge throughout the industry, processors are looking for ways to grow production without adding headcount. That’s why integrated automation is becoming a key investment strategy for many coil processors,” he notes. “The real value of the JM Steel project is the integration of both systems into a single workflow.”
BUILDING TRUST
Klein says the Sinton slitter is the eighth line that JM Steel has installed over the years.
“In our industry, anyone can sell a piece of equipment. What really matters is whether the customer comes back for a second line, a third line or, in this case, an eighth line. That level of repeat business isn’t built on a sales presentation. It’s built on performance, reliability, support and trust developed over many years.”
He says Braner resolutely stands behind its equipment and supports customers long after startup, which “is just as important as the equipment itself. JM Steel’s continued investment in Braner equipment speaks not only to the performance of the lines but also to the relationship that has been built between our companies over time.”
Braner USA, 847/671-6210, braner.com
JM Steel, 361/437-4510, jm-steel.com
