Manufacturers Feel Recession

John Wolz

One key sign that fastener manufacturers felt the recession of 2001 was inventory turnovers dropping from a 6.7 average for 2000 to 4.7 last year.

Manufacturers reported operating at an average of 68.7% of capacity in 2001. That was down from 76.1% for 2000, and it was the lowest point in the eight years it has been monitored in the FIN Survey.

There also are signals that when the economy picks up manufacturers and suppliers will be in production quickly. Raw material inventory is down, indicating production will have to pick up. The fastener manufacturers� Finished Goods Inventory Index is lower than at the end of 2000. At 2.6 the inventory index is at its lowest point in the six years it has been monitored. It was at 3.3 last year, and the previous low was 2.9 in 1996.

Did you have difficulty obtaining raw materials in 2001?

What raw materials are currently difficult to obtain?
Nut specials, medium carbon, monels, alloy steel bars, 422 SJT, B-16, nickel alloys, stainless, brass, aluminum, 718 and 660 alloy and some grades of stainless round bar.

Only 15.9% of manufacturers reported fastener price increases for 2001, while 34.9% faced decreases. Nearly a quarter (23.8%) anticipate increases in the next six months vs. 15.9% that expected additional price decreases. \ �2002 FastenerNews.com