DUG East
I attended the DUG East show in Pittsburgh this week. That is a trade show for the fracking industry. I hate to say that I saw multiple steel fabrications with almost no castings (though I did see a couple of Ridge Tool pipe wrenches). This should logically be fertile ground for firms who do casting design and casting conversions.
US Manufacturing in the Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal published a long article a few days ago titled “Why U.S. Manufacturing Is Poised for a Comeback (Maybe)”. The mass media sometimes see things before I do and sometimes it is reversed. I can see that the creative side of US Manufacturing is back and very strong indeed. More specifically, companies who provide new technology and innovative thinking are doing just fine. Companies who deal in commodity thinking on the sales and purchasing sides are struggling more – they still face declining margins and often overwhelming price competition.
The article itself was done in a point-counterpoint fashion. On the negative side this passage stood out to me: “Meanwhile, political gridlock in Washington leaves companies highly uncertain about future taxes, health-care costs and repairs to the nations' crumbling roads, bridges and ports. Caterpillar says capacity constraints and outdated technology at U.S. ports have prompted it to use Canadian ports for about 40% of the company's imports and exports.” That kind of uncertainty is a manifestation of an abject lack of leadership from elected officials. Nobody wants to make big decisions when future events are so clouded by the whims of Washington.
On the positive side I recognize this reality: “These days, companies are increasingly focused on reacting quickly to changes in demand … Being nimble reduces the risk that companies will be stuck with excess stocks of unsalable items or a shortage of items they could sell. … It's a lot easier for companies to act quickly when they're making their products close to the customer. Manufacturing in the U.S. can reduce the time needed to obtain goods to days or weeks from the two months or so needed to ship goods across the Pacific and get them through customs.”
Things are very different now than just a few years ago. If Washington gets out of the way then US manufacturers can and will respond creatively to the marketplace.
Vasko speaks!
Hold the jokes, please. I am tentatively scheduled to speak at the Northern Indiana AFS on March 9, 2015. Mark your calendars! I will even buy you a club soda if you show up!