US machine tool consumption steady - Materials Outlook - Brief Article - Industry Overview

U.S. machine tool consumption totaled an estimated $186.93 million in October, virtually even with a revised $186.95 million the previous month but down 0.6 percent from $188.06 million in October 2001, according to a joint report by the American Machine Tool Distributors' Association, Rockville, Md., and the Association for Manufacturing Technology, McLean, Va. "Reports noting the current contraction of the manufacturing economy and excess production capacity for durable goods underscore the need for U.S. manufacturers to adapt to permanent systemic changes taking place," said AMTDA president Ralph J. Nappi. "No doubt, business will improve, but not to prior levels. We must recognize the playing field has changed and that value-added processes are increasingly more pivotal than the rigid product focus embraced in the past." Machine tool consumption in the first 10 months of 2002 totaled more than $1.72 billion, down 26.6 percent from nearly $2.35 billion in the same period last year.