James Underhill, floor manager and fabricator for Pendleton Steel Masters, stands by one of his work tables, Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023, at the business. “They pay me to play with fire and build things,” he said.
The Pendleton Steel Masters location on Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023. Steel Masters opened the Pendleton branch as their second location and hope to grow to provide fabricated goods at a local level. Steel Masters is located at 5678 Northwest Golden Avenue in Pendleton.
James Underhill, floor manager and fabricator for Pendleton Steel Masters, stands by one of his work tables, Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023, at the business. “They pay me to play with fire and build things,” he said.
The Pendleton Steel Masters location on Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023. Steel Masters opened the Pendleton branch as their second location and hope to grow to provide fabricated goods at a local level. Steel Masters is located at 5678 Northwest Golden Avenue in Pendleton.
PENDLETON — A Hillboro-based steel fabrication company is looking to grow with a location in Pendleton.
Steel Masters’ expansion comes after a cherished employee, James Underhill, who is from Pendleton, decided to return home. Peter Young, who purchased Steel Masters in September 2020, saw an opportunity.
“James had indicated that he wanted to move back home because it was getting expensive and the Hillsboro location,” Young said. “We basically started this branch on the idea that James would be working out here. We didn’t want to lose a good employee. That’s kind of how the whole process started.”
The Pendleton location will help alleviate the workload on Hillsboro, Young explained, as the two branches will work together to increase efficiency. The Pendleton Steel Masters will receive orders from the Hillsboro location, fabricate and then ship their completed orders to Hillsboro for order fulfillment.
Young said he hopes the Pendleton location also draws new customers and local businesses from Pendleton and the surrounding area. While the Pendleton location remains small, with two employees, Young said local business can drive the Pendleton operations to rival Hillsboro, where 16 employees work full time.
“We just met with an economic developer from the city to gauge what the options are for us to work together,” Young said. “We’re doing projects at the county jail, we’re doing projects at the Pendleton Woolen Mills and (Hill Meat Co.). Hopefully we find more local opportunities, right now there aren’t a lot of other options for fabrication in this area.”
Underhill started steel fabricating in 2008 and has loved it ever since. He now is the floor manager and fabricator for the new Steel Masters branch.
“They pay me to play with fire and build things,” Underhill said. “At an early age, I found I liked building stuff. So when I figured out how to play with fire and build stuff, I was hooked.”
Steel Masters moved into their Pendleton location in July 2022 and have taken a gradual approach to scaling up operations, purchasing and stocking the location with tools and equipment that will further diversify the types of projects the business can undertake.
“We’re really trying to get to a spot where most of the business in this location will be local,” Young said. “Pendleton and Hermiston are really growing, so we want to be a part of that growth.”
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Reporter for the East Oregonian, originally from Miami, Florida, spent the last several years in Tokyo, Japan. Speaks English, French, and a bit of Japanese. Focused on local news, profiles, and food reporting. Passionate about aviation.
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