Empty cable reels picked up in Fontana

What gets made in Fontana

Fontana was a steel town. Kaiser Steel built its mill here during the Second World War, and for decades it was the largest steel works in the West. Part of the old mill still rolls steel as California Steel Industries, and much of the rest of the land became the speedway. The industry that grew up around the mill, along the 10 and the railroad on the city's south side, now holds distribution buildings, metal businesses and trucking yards.

North of the 10, toward the 210, the city is newer, with business parks, distribution centres and housing that spread north toward the San Gabriel Mountains.

Southern California Edison serves Fontana. Heavy industry and very large warehouses mean high-capacity feeders and substations, and the work on them never really stops.

Steel, logistics and utilities all use big cable. Fontana's reels tend to be larger than average: 48 to 72 inch reels of power cable from mill and warehouse work, and bolted utility reels from feeder jobs. Contractors along the 10 add the usual 36 inch reels. A Fontana stop often fills a good share of the deck by itself.

Where Fontana's empty reels come from

Steel and metal businesses

Heavy power and control cable on 48 to 72 inch reels from mill and plant work.

Distribution buildings along the 10 and the 15

Fit-outs empty 36 to 48 inch nailed reels in batches.

Utility feeders

SCE work serving heavy loads leaves bolted reels of 60 inches and up.

How the Inland Empire on the 10 run reaches Fontana

The Inland Empire run reaches Fontana from Ontario on the 10, or from Jurupa Valley on Cherry Avenue, and takes stops off Sierra Avenue, Citrus Avenue or Cherry Avenue before going on to Rialto and San Bernardino. Mill-area yards are large; tell us if the driver needs safety gear to enter.

Other stops on the Inland Empire on the 10 lane: Chino, Ontario, Jurupa Valley, Rancho Cucamonga, San Bernardino, Redlands. Reels from Fontana can share a deck with any of them.