4th Qtr Economic Pick Up

According to the Associated Press, the economy boomed at the end of 2009, growing at the fastest rate in six years. Many of the manufacturers I have spoken with report that they also saw the 4th quarter pick up and that the new year has continued to outperform the previous year. The question is, will it continue? The general consensus is that inventories were depleted and that the bubble is just that, a short-lived phenomenon.

The good news is that it is not likely to get any worse. Analysts predict low single-digit growth for 2010 and say that the pressure is on businesses to pull us out of this economic down-turn. The problem is that until companies start hiring again, driving down unemployment, consumers will continue to feel squeezed and spending on goods and services will remain low. For our industry this could mean another long year until manufacturing follows consumer demand.

We kick off the new year with our Polyolefin Spotlight. Polyethylene and Polypropylene are two of the largest volume thermoplastics used today and are available in a wide range of grades and formulations. Polyolefins find proven applications in a variety of markets from medical and chemical to toys and sporting goods and oil and gas to food processing and marine.

Next up we have a CNC Router and Router Bits Spotlight. CNC Routers revolutionized the plastic fabrication industry and continue to evolve offering fabricators shorter set-up times, faster cycle times and greater accuracy and repeatability. Combined with today's router tooling, which offers fabricators the ability to achieve high quality finishes right off the router, fabricators are reducing the need for post-cutting processes, shortening lead-times and increasing part quality and company profit.

Finally, in Safety Solutions, Jack Podijil says "Fasten Your Forklift Seat Belts." Each year, tens of thousands of injuries related to powered industrial trucks occur in U.S. workplaces. Unfortunately, most injuries and property damage can be attributed to lack of safe operating procedures, lack of safety-rule enforcement and insufficient or inadequate training.

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Enjoy the issue,