Forecasted downturn under way.Recent interviews with key personnel of major casting consumers have reinforced our earlier forecast for a downturn Downturn The transition point between a rising, expanding economy to a falling, contracting one. downturn A decline in security prices or economic activity following a period of rising or stable prices or activity. in 1996. The downturn is expected to continue until '97, when a slight recovery is expected to take place. Recovery of the European market has also stalled stall 1 n. 1. A compartment for one domestic animal in a barn or shed. 2. a. A booth, cubicle, or stand used by a vendor, as at a market. b. , thus reducing export potential. Stratecasts continues to forecast a 7-8% decline in most casting market sectors for the remainder of year, followed by a 2.5% increase in '97. Gray Iron Shipments of gray iron castings in the U.S. declined about 2.5% in '95 from the 6.4 million ton-high in '94. A further drop-off of 8% is forecast for'96 to 5.7 million tons. Declines are expected in most market sectors as the economy weakens. Motor Vehicles--Automakers are expected to produce some 10.8 million light vehicles in '96. As a result, gray iron shipments for use in light vehicles is forecast at 1.9 million tons, a drop-off of 9.5% from '95. Medium-to-heavy truck production is expected to take a larger drop of 12%, to 280,000 vehicles. A decrease in trailer In communications, a code or set of codes that make up the last part of a transmitted message. See trailer label. production of 10% to 180,000 units will also decrease casting demand. Municipal Castings--Our original estimate of a 6% loss of gray iron demand in this market sector has been increased to 8%, based on an expected slowdown For articles with similar titles, see Slow Down (disambiguation). A slowdown is an industrial action in which employees perform their duties but seek to reduce productivity or efficiency in their performance of these duties. in construction activity and housing starts. The new estimate is 420,000 tons in '96. Machine Tool Castings--Shipments of gray iron for U.S. consumption of machine tools in '95 increased slightly from the peak year of '94 to 125,000 tons. This amount is expected to drop to 115,000 tons in '96, as automotive demand for machine tools decreases. Pumps and Compressors--This market sector, which remained healthy in '95 and equalled the sales levels of '94, is expected to decline in '96. Gray iron casting shipments to this market are expected to decline 7% to 210,000 tons in '96. Special Industry Machinery--Gray iron shipments from foundries to special machinery manufacturers are forecasted to decline 4% in '96 to 200,000 tons. Internal Combustion combustion, rapid chemical reaction of two or more substances with a characteristic liberation of heat and light; it is commonly called burning. The burning of a fuel (e.g., wood, coal, oil, or natural gas) in air is a familiar example of combustion. Engines--Based on decreased truck and construction machinery production in '96, a drop of 8% is expected to 480,000 tons of gray iron castings. Refrigeration refrigeration, process for drawing heat from substances to lower their temperature, often for purposes of preservation. Refrigeration in its modern, portable form also depends on insulating materials that are thin yet effective. and Air Conditioning--Though exports continue strong in '96, a loss of 6% in casting production is expected for this market sector. A sizeable increase in exports in '97 should bring casting consumption for compressors to 135,000 tons. Household Appliances--Substitution of plastic for some iron parts should reduce casting use in appliances to 80,000 tons in '96. Ductile Iron Ductile iron, also called ductile cast iron or nodular cast iron, is a type of cast iron invented in 1943 by Keith Millis[1]. While most varieties of cast iron are brittle, ductile iron is much more ductile, as the name implies. Shipments of ductile iron are forecasted to drop below the 4 million ton level in '96 to 3.75 million tons, a 7% decline from '95. Pipe--Ductile iron pipe production dropped below the expected 1.8 million ton level in '95 and is expected to drop to 1.7 million tons in '96 as construction activity declines. Motor Vehicles--Based on the reduced demand from light vehicle and truck manufacturers, ductile iron consumption in this market sector is expected to decrease 9% to 970,000 tons in '96. Continued conversion of steel wheels and differential parts on trucks to ductile iron is expected to bring ductile iron use in heavy trucks to over 200,000 tons in '98. Special Industry Machinery--The forecasted loss of casting demand in plastic and printing machinery in '96 is expected to decrease ductile iron consumption in this market sector by 5% in '96 to 88,000 tons. Construction Machinery & Equipment--Decreased construction activity in '96 could lower ductile iron consumption by 5% this year versus '95. Steel Castings Steel casting is a manufacturing process in which molten metal is poured into a mold, allowed to solidify within the mold, and then the mold is broken and the solid piece is taken out. Spurred by two strong years of freight car production, steel castings enjoyed another good year in '95, finishing up the year slightly below 1.38 million tons in shipments. Based on forecasted declines in mining machinery, freight car and construction machinery production, casting shipments are expected to decline 10% to 1.2 million tons in '96. Railroad--Freight car production is expected to drop to 43,000 cars in '96, thus reducing steel casting use of railroad railroad or railway, form of transportation most commonly consisting of steel rails, called tracks, on which freight cars, passenger cars, and other rolling stock are drawn by one locomotive or more. castings to 580,000 tons. Construction and Mining--A loss of demand in '96 of about 11% is forecasted, reducing steel casting consumption to 155,000 and 98,000 tons, respectively, in these markets. Corrosion-Resistant Castings--Spurred by valve and pump demand in corrosive corrosive /cor·ro·sive/ (kor-o´siv) producing gradual destruction, as of a metal by electrochemical reaction or of the tissues by the action of a strong acid or alkali; an agent that so acts. environments, corrosion-resistant steel casting shipments reached 71,000 tons in both '94 and '95. A 10% reduction of shipments is forecast in '96, based on a drop in chemical plant and petrochemical petrochemical, any one of a large group of chemicals derived from a component of petroleum or natural gas. The cracking processes for manufacturing gasoline produce vast quantities of gaseous hydrocarbons. construction activities. Aluminum After achieving two consecutive peak years in shipments during '94 and '95 at 1.6 million tons, a decline of 8.6% in consumption is forecasted for aluminum castings in '96. Motor vehicles--Aluminum casting consumption in motor vehicles is forecasted to reach 152 lb per vehicle in '96, or 828,000 tons. Brass & Bronze Castings Shipments of brass and bronze castings are forecasted to decline 10% in '96 to 271,000 tons based on lower demand for plumbing plumbing, piping systems inside buildings for water supply and sewage. The Romans had a highly developed plumbing system; water was brought to Rome by aqueducts and distributed to homes in lead pipes—hence the name plumbing from the Latin word plumbum fittings and industrial valves. Shipments are forecasted to bounce back bounce v. bounced, bounc·ing, bounc·es v.intr. 1. To rebound after having struck an object or a surface. 2. in '98 to 318,000 tons. |
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