CLEVELAND, June 26, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Olympic Steel, Inc. (Nasdaq:ZEUS), a national metals service center, has been named 2012 Service Center of the Year by American Metal Market (AMM).

A panel of industry experts selected Olympic Steel as part of AMM's third annual Awards for Steel Excellence. Olympic was named to a narrow group of 24 organizations and 3 individual finalists in 5 of 10 award categories, including "Best Innovation," "Best Mergers & Acquisitions," "Best Environmental Responsibility / Stewardship," "Logistics / Transportation Provider of the Year," and "Service Center of the Year." The awards were presented at an industry dinner held in New York City during the annual Steel Success Strategies Conference.

The "Service Center of the Year" designation is awarded based upon success in customer service, support, and retention initiatives; technological innovation and continuous operational and product quality and on-time delivery improvement efforts; and comparative inventory turns and credit management performance for 2010 vs. 2011.

"We are thrilled receiving this recognition as an acknowledgement to the efforts of our employees," said Michael D. Siegal, Olympic Steel Chairman and CEO. "We are honored to be awarded among the leaders of our industry, and we congratulate the other winners."

American Metal Market is a global online resource for steel, nonferrous, and metal scrap industry news, pricing and information. Additional information about the publication is available at http://www.amm.com/.

Founded in 1954, Olympic Steel is a leading U.S. metals service center focused on the direct sale and distribution of large volumes of processed carbon, coated and stainless flat-rolled sheet, coil and plate steel and aluminum products. The Company's CTI subsidiary is a leading distributor of steel tubing, bar, pipe, valves and fittings, and fabricates pressure parts for the electric utility industry. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Olympic Steel currently operates from 29 facilities in North America. For further information, visit the Company's web site at http://www.olysteel.com.

The Olympic Steel, Inc. logo is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=3582

Michelle Pearson-Casey
Corporate Human Resources Manager
Telephone: (216) 292-3800
Fax: (216) 292-0295