Business View Caribbean - November 2015 77
With the advent of ISCOTT, the state owned iron and
steel company that used iron ore to produce billet,
wire rod, and rebar in coil, Jack established CENTRIN
(Central Trinidad Steel), an integrated rolling mill spe-
cializing in re-bar and merchant bars such as angles,
flats and squares. The year was 1983, and the Dan-
steel Group of Companies was now regional and extra
-regional manufacturers and exporters of steel and
wire products to the Caribbean, North American, and
Central American Markets.
Unfortunately, the elder Ramoutarsingh soon ran into
difficulties because of a global downturn, a recession,
and the foreclosure of the state-owned, sole, raw ma-
terial producer, ISCOTT. Raw material procurement
became a challenge and protectionist policies that fa-
vored ISPATT, the new supplier, caused a 50 percent
spike in the price of locally supplied steel, thereby
making his manufactured products uncompetitive in
the world marketplace. He spent ten years in court
battles, but finally won a decision mandating that the
local material supplier had to sell to him at the aver-
age world-market price. But, according to Ramoutars-
ingh, Trinrico was stagnant for many years because his
father was busy fighting these legal skirmishes. In ad-
dition, he had to liquidate the Dansteel Group and sell
his hardware stores in an effort to save CENTRIN and
Trinrico. In the end, only Trinrico remained.
Trinrico continued to produce, but the establishment
of several new local and regional manufacturers, plus
the separation from the former Group, challenged
the company. The former sister companies had now
inadvertently become potential competitors, as well.
