Midland tube maker Caparo is to end production at its Walsall site with the loss of up to 90 jobs.
Manufacture of the steel precision tubes, which are used in the automotive and construction industry, is set to be consolidated in Oldbury.
The exact number of jobs to be axed has yet to be determined, said Caparo chief executive Angad Paul.
But Mr Paul said the move was vital if the company was to see off increased competition from imports from China, Thailand and Turkey.
He said: "It is premature to talk about exact numbers, but the truth of the matter is there will be some job losses in Walsall over a period of time.
"In Walsall the tube production is going to stop, but that will be a gradual process.
"Some people will come over from Walsall, but it is premature to say how many this will affect."
A total of 90 people work at the Caparo Precision Tubing works in Birchills, which is also the home to its sister companies Barton Aluminium Foundry and Barton Engineering.
The two other firms, which employ a total of 200 people, will be unaffected by the changes.
Mr Paul said margins in the industry had been squeezed, partly because of European Union quotas on hot rolled coiling, the material used to make steel tubes.
He said: "There is also a massive anomaly in the industry because there are quotas for raw material for tubes, which means we are not working on a level playing field. We are buying the raw materials for the same price that our competitors are selling the tubing."
