The Shaw Group
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Steel and pipe fabrication |
| Founded | 1986 |
| Founder | J.M. Bernhard Jr., Oscar J. LaFleur, A.W. Angelo |
| Headquarters | Houston , United States |
Area served | North America, Middle East |
Key people | Mike Childers (CEO), Sachin Singh (COO), Andrew Cannon (CFO) |
| Products | Pipe fabrication, piping systems, structural steel fabrication, mechanical assembly, modularization |
Number of employees | 1400 |
The Shaw Group operates as a steel and pipe fabrication company with expertise in induction bending. Its main office is situated in Houston, Texas, and the company maintains a workforce of approximately 1,400 employees spread throughout North America and the Middle East.
History
Established in 1986 by J.M. Bernhard Jr., Oscar J. LaFleur, and A.W. Angelo under the name Shaw Industries Inc., the firm grew significantly by acquiring multiple companies such as Alloy Piping Products, Fronek A/DE, Inc., Naptech, Inc., Pipe Shields Inc., United Crafts, Inc., Merit Industrial Constructors, Inc., Cojafex B.V., Prospect Industries plc, Stone & Webster Inc., IT Corporation, Envirogen, Inc., MWR, Inc., Badger Technologies from Washington Group International, and Energy Delivery Services from Duke Energy Global Markets.
In 2006, Shaw obtained a 20% ownership interest in the Westinghouse Electric Company, which was predominantly controlled by Toshiba. Due to fluctuations affecting yen-based debt, Toshiba agreed in 2011 to acquire Shaw’s share for $1.6 billion. This transaction was finalized in January 2013, resulting in Toshiba increasing its stake in Westinghouse to 87%.
In July 2012, CB&I reached an agreement to purchase Shaw for roughly $3 billion; the acquisition was completed in February 2013 following shareholder consent. Subsequently, CB&I itself was acquired by McDermott International around 2018 for an estimated $6 billion.
After filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January 2020, McDermott divested Shaw’s former pipe fabrication operations on June 1, 2020. These assets included pipe fabrication, piping systems, structural steel fabrication, mechanical assembly, and modularization subsidiaries. The sale encompassed seven facilities located in Louisiana, Arkansas, South Carolina, Utah, Abu Dhabi, and Bahrain and transferred the rights to The Shaw Group brand to Shaw Acquisitions Holdings LLC.
The company shifted its corporate headquarters from Baton Rouge, Louisiana to Houston, Texas. Present-day executive management features CEO Mike Childers, COO Sachin Singh, and CFO Andrew Cannon.