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Our History

Proudly Manufacturing since 1934

Austube Mills has been providing you and your community with the best and most innovative steel solutions for Australian designs and conditions. Our tried and tested products and our passionate people give you the confidence to take your design ambitions and bring them to life.

Newcastle Mill begins production

Stewarts and Lloyds construct first mill and produce first tube at Newcastle, NSW.

New machinery commissioned

Power machines installed. First automated tabulation machines, early forerunners to computerised systems

Post-war production

Post war boom period, Stewarts and Lloyds restructure to form Tubemakers of Australia

Innovating galvanising

International licence for “Newcastle Design” – pioneered process for automatically galvanizing circular pipe

Continued innovation

Tubmakers introduces ERW process. Ross Palmer becomes CEO of Palmer Tube Mills in QLD, beginning expansion of Tubemakers largest domestic competitor

DuraGal difference

Tubemakers create new corrosion resistant tube product and cold-formed process for DuraGal protective coatings. Palmer Tube Mills opens Acacia Ridge site in QLD in 1985

Industry's offer diversifies

Palmer Tube Mills' new products include SupaGal, Dogbone, and Truform bender

Palmer Tube Mills acquistion

Palmer Tube Mills joins Australian National Industries group, later acquired by Smorgon Steel in 1999.

Increasing capability

Tubemakers builds Somerton site in Victoria, increasing capability plus introducing a profiles range and a new employment model to the industry

Tubemakers joins BHP

BHP acquires Tubemakers (1997) and divests OneSteel in 2000

Rise of OneSteel

OneSteel acquires Smorgon Steel and combines group as OneSteel Australian Tube Mills

Austube Mills re-brand

OneSteel Australian Tube Mills re-brands as Austube Mills and delivers it’s 1,000,000 tonne of DuraGal product.