I spoke with a stamper last week who found one of the few areas for growth in this economy: takeover work. Jim Schwartz, general manager of marketing at Eagle Wings Industries, Rantoul, Ill., recently implemented magnetic die clamping, a technology that has allowed the company to take on new work in a hurry, reducing press retooling time to a matter of days. We"ll cover how the company does it in a future print edition of The FABRICATOR, but the surge in takeover work implies a larger trend. Companies that adapt quickly win; those that don"t lose and, as we"re seeing, sometimes shutter their doors.
Posts Tagged ‘Global Competition’
Getting smart in a global downturn
January 5th, 2009
By: Tim Heston
By: Tim Heston
After reading the news feeds during the past few days, I can tell you what my best Christmas gift was: a refreshing break from those news feeds. The-sky-is-falling manufacturing news came in steadily over the holiday, and it didn"t make for fun reading. The Institute for Supply Management"s Manufacturing Index fell to its lowest level since June 1980, and no sector was immune to the drop. New orders, in fact, dropped to their lowest level since ISM began tracking them in 1948. That"s not a good thing. The negative news, according to reports, was even worse than the not-so-rosy predictions made by analysts.
There has not been much good news to be had in any sectoreven those sectors that have been able to carry the overall sector to some extent in the past, Chris Kuehl wrote today in his Business Intelligence Brief e-newsletter. Kuehl is managing director of Lawrence, Kan.-based Armada Corporate Intelligence, and an economist for the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association. Aerospace is down, export-oriented manufacturing is down, all forms of consumer goods manufacturing is down, and, with the decline in oil prices, even the usually robust energy sector is in decline.
When attendees at October"s FABTECH® International & AWS Welding Show told me that times weren"t all that bad in 2008, but they had serious concerns for 2009, it turns out those concerns might just be validated.
EuroBLECH—It's a good thing
October 30th, 2008
By: Dan Davis
By: Dan Davis
Well, I"m barely alive and well after a weeklong trip to EuroBLECH in Hanover, Germany. Tell someone who doesn"t have to travel a lot that you are going to a foreign country, and it sounds exotic. Only after those same people have walked a thousand steps through slow-moving airport security; crowded airplanes; musty hotels; incredibly large exhibit halls; and damp, cold weather in a foreign country will they finally understand that a work trip is a lot of work.
Embracing globalization at FABTECH
October 7th, 2008
By: Tim Heston
By: Tim Heston
As the Dow did its dance on a cliff"s edge yesterday, the FABTECH International® & AWS Welding Show kicked off with gusto yesterday here in Las Vegas, and the credit crunch seemed refreshingly far away. Why?
It"s because Jim Waters has visited Chinese cities with populations of more than 5 million--with no airport. You know what I was thinking?
The (North) American economy
September 23rd, 2008
By: Tim Heston
By: Tim Heston
News of how the American government could take up to $700 billion of bad debt out of the hands of the private sector had the weight of something historic. The move will add as never before to our already mounting national debt. It will reshape the financial landscape, not only of the U.S. but of the entire world.
For me, that last part took a bit to sink in. Who knows whether the strategy will work in the long run, but one thing"s for sure: We"re all in this together. Parties and counterparties of these complex financial transactions span the globe.
This certainly is apparent with our closest trading partner just north of us.
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What price gold?
August 20th, 2008
By: Vicki Bell
By: Vicki Bell
As I write this, the U.S. leads in total medals (82) in the 2008 Summer Olympics. However, China has won more gold medals (45) than the U.S. (26) and Russia (13) combined, and more than the U.S. and Great Britain (26) combined.
The U.S. is expected to gain ground in the gold medal race in basketball, softball, volleyball, and track and field events. Whether it can win the race for gold will be decided by the end of the Olympics this weekend.
So beyond national and individual pride, which are priceless, what are the gold medals actually worth?
Made in America, sold to BRIC
August 18th, 2008
By: Tim Heston
By: Tim Heston
Several events this month have made me feel a tad on edge, at least at first.
First, it was the Olympics. I"m sure many of you saw the opening ceremonies, and like me you probably thought it was quite a spectacle. You probably also remember commentator Matt Lauer"s comment as 2,008 drummers played in unison with amazing precision and ferocity. Paraphrased, he said many American viewers may find such a thing intimidating. That included me.
Scanning manufacturing news at the time, I read a report from the Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI. Daniel Meckstroth, the organization"s chief economist, produced a report stating that though the manufacturing sector had seen a temporary boost, housing activity continues to worsen, job losses continue, inflation is rampant, credit is more difficult to obtain, and firms remain cautious about capital investments in the United States. We think manufacturing will remain in a slow, shallow, downward trend until early 2009.
Yeesh.
The Japanese supply stream
August 5th, 2008
By: Eric Lundin
By: Eric Lundin
Hidetsugu Masuda revels as a tour guide.
The president of KantoSeiko Co., Ltd. Group, in Fuji-Gun, Shizuoka Prefecture, isn"t your typical Japanese shop manager. The shop"s main meeting room is lined with photos of customers and other shop managers from Japan and, indeed, around the world who have toured his facility. Each tour is usually a learning experience both for Masuda and his guests.
Last week I was lucky enough to be one of those guests.
This InBev's for you
July 14th, 2008
By: Tim Heston
By: Tim Heston
Two recent news items give a great juxtaposition, at least in my mind. One shows the price of globalization; the other shows the benefits.
First, the price. The board of Anheuser-Busch Cos., a St. Louis institutionand a large employer of welders and other metal fabricators working in its breweries and subsidiaries (including can maker Metal Container Corp.)approved a $52 billion deal that would hand over ownership to Belgium brewer giant InBev NV by the end of the year. The deal would create the world"s largest brewer, owner not only of the King of Beers but also Canada"s Labatt, topping out SABMiller, the South African Brewer that, after a series of deals, now owns Miller and has a stake in Coors.
What I noticed was the company histories. The Anheuser-Busch Cos. has roots going back to the 1860s, when Eberhard Anheuser and his son-in-law Adolphus Busch got into the brewing business. Over the next century and a half, the family grew the company into a St. Louis icon and generous source of philanthropy. Its downtown brewery is an historic landmark.
InBev was formed four years ago through a merger.
Still made in the U.S.A.
May 21st, 2008
By: Vicki Bell
By: Vicki Bell
Quick—off the top of your head—what metal product introduced in the U.S. in 1945 is made from 98 feet of wire, is advertised with one of the most memorable jingles of all times, sells for less than $5.00, has sales totaling more than 300 million, and still is being made in the U.S.?
Here's a hint. It also is the official state toy of Pennsylvania. Maybe not the best hint, unless you live in Pennsylvania.
