Rotarian Craft O’Neal Shares the O’Neal Industries Story

President Bruce Rogers with Rotarians Craft O’Neal and Holman Head

This week the Rotary Club of Birmingham welcomed featured speaker Craft O'Neal, Craft O’Neal, Chairman & CEO of O'Neal Industries, the parent company of O'Neal Steel and other subsidiary companies. O'Neal shared an overview of the company founded by his grandfather over a century ago, the trajectory of its dynamic growth and evolution into a global leader among metals service centers and component and tube manufacturing businesses.

Bio for Craft O’Neal

Craft O’Neal is the grandson of O’Neal Steel founder Kirkman O’Neal and was born and raised in the metals business. He earned his bachelor’s degree in business and economics from Birmingham-Southern College.

During college, Craft worked summers in the O’Neal Steel warehouse and following graduation in 1984, began full-time with the company as a member of the Birmingham District’s Inside Sales Department. A year later, he left Birmingham to experience what it was like to work for the company elsewhere spending five years in both Atlanta and Houston, working in both sales and management positions. He returned to the Birmingham District in 1995 to lead the company’s largest location. Over the next ten years, Craft held various roles such as Southern Region VP and VP of Sales and Purchasing. In December of 2004, Craft succeeded his father, Emmet O’Neal, as Chairman and CEO. In 2008, O’Neal Industries, (ONI) the parent company for O’Neal Steel and other subsidiary companies, was formed and he became its Chairman and CEO.

Craft, an active fundraiser for many civic organizations, also serves on the boards of the Birmingham Business Alliance, Children’s of Alabama, O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB, UAB’s Athletics Foundation, and Leadership Birmingham. He is a member of the Monday Morning Quarterback Club and the Rotary Club of Birmingham and a graduate of Leadership Alabama.

Craft and his wife Lisa are busy with their combined family of four boys and three girls. An avid sports fan and participant, Craft stays active playing golf, tennis and pickleball. Additionally, he stays challenged with outside ventures including Craft’s restaurants and The Fennec.