"It also combines great employees at Dearborn with great employees at AK Steel to strengthen a terrific company that is better able to compete, and to win, in the global steel marketplace. We welcome the employees of Dearborn to AK Steel." He added that AK Steel intends to "utilize all of Dearborn's production units and the company has no plans to cease operations at any of its current steelmaking or steel finishing facilities." The acquisition is expected to raise the company's annual shipments of finished steel to around 7.5 million tons "We expect the transaction to be immediately accretive to our earnings and create significant long-term value for AK Steel, our employees, customers and shareholders," Wainscott said. About 1,800 people are employed at the plant at 4001 Miller Road on part of the former Rogue Steel complex.