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 Purchasers Expect 5.7%
Manufacturing Growth In 2010
Expectations for 2010 are for the positive conditions experienced in the second half of 2009 to continue in manufacturing, say the nation's purchasing and supply management executives in their December 2009 Semiannual Economic Forecast
. The overall forecast projects optimism about the U.S. economy for 2010, with the manufacturing sector expected to increase in 13 of 18 industries. Business investment, a major driver in the U.S. economy, will decline, however.
These projections are part of the forecast issued by the Business Survey Committee of the Institute for Supply Management™ (ISM). The forecast was released by Norbert J. Ore, CPSM, C.P.M., chair of the ISM Manufacturing Business Survey Committee.
"While 2009 has been a challenging year overall, we are in a growth trend as we approach the end of the year," said Ore. "Respondents expect cost pressures to be low to moderate based on their price forecast. Manufacturing growth is now in its fourth consecutive month as measured by and reported in the monthly Manufacturing ISM Report On Business." |
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Duties Okayed For Chinese OCTG
The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) voted 6-0 to allow the U.S. Commerce Department to impose countervailing duties ranging from 10-16% on Chinese-made oil country tubular goods. The Commerce Department previously announced preliminary anti-dumping duties of up to 99% on the pipe and is expected to announce its final decision on the size of those additional duties by May.
The U.S. imported $2.74 billion of OCTG from China in 2008, more than triple the previous year, making this the largest trade action against China. The same companies that brought this case to the ITC reportedly are filing a new petition asking for duties on oil well drill pipe.
McJunkin Red Man Pays Off Debt, Revamps Top Brass
McJunkin Red Man Corp.
(MRC) announced the completion of its offering of $1 billion aggregate principal amount of 9.5% Senior Secured Notes due 2016. The company received net proceeds of approximately $957.8 million. Coupled with available cash on hand, the Notes were used to repay approximately $977 million of outstanding indebtedness. The Notes were sold in a private offering that was exempt from the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933. MRC also announced the appointment of Andrew Lane, president and CEO of MRC and MRM Holding Co. (MRMHC), to the added role of chairman of MRMHC. Former chairman Craig Ketchum will serve as co-chairman of the board of PVF Holdings LLC, MRC's indirect
parent company, together with H.B. Wehrle III.
Tyco Acquires Two Brazilian Valve Makers
Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC) announced that its Flow Control business has acquired two Brazilian valve companies in a move to expand its product and service offerings in Brazil and South America.
Tyco Flow Control acquired Hiter Industria e Comercio de Controle Termo-Hidraulico Ltda, a leading privately-held Brazilian valve manufacturer, and took full ownership of an existing joint venture that Tyco Flow Control had with Valvulas Crosby Industria e Comercio Ltda. The two businesses had combined revenues of approximately $66 million in 2008.
Flowserve Joint Ventures With Italian Valve Maker
Flowserve Corp. has entered into a joint venture agreement with Valbart Srl, an Italian manufacturer of high performance valves. Called Flowserve/Valbart Flow Control Srl, the joint venture will enable the two companies to work on delivering a trunnion control ball valve that represents a cost-saving solution for oil and gas applications.
Specified Fittings Buys HDPE Capability
Specified Fittings has acquired the HDPE solid wall fitting division of KWH Pipe. The production equipment will be relocated from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to Specified Fittings' plant in Bellingham, WA. The equipment has IPS, DIPS and metric capabilities with some machinery able to produce fittings through 54-in. and 500 mm.
Barry Becomes 1st F.W. Webb Female G.M.
 Cathleen Barry has been named general manager of
F.W. Webb's branch in Queensbury, NY, becoming the first female branch manager in company history. Barry began her Webb career as an industrial inside salesperson at the Albany, NY, branch in 1991. She was appointed operations manager of the Queensbury location in 2004.
 Coyle Supply Wins
Top A-D Award
St. Louis-based PVF distributor
Coyle Supply was awarded Affiliated Distributors' top MVP honor at A-D's recent annual meeting. Pictured from left to right: Gary Jackson, A-D's vp of the PVF Div.; Pat Coyle, Jerome Coyle and Scott Bailey from Coyle Supply.
American Pipe & Supply was named the PVF Div. Affiliate of the Year, while Los Angeles-based Consumers Pipe & Supply
was honored with Warren Alloy f0r the best PVF conversion to A-D of the year.
Betts Piping Supply Celebrates 50 Years
Betts Piping Supply Co.
recently celebrated 50 years in business with a trade show at its Westfield, MA location. Starting out as an industrial PVF distributor, the company has since expanded into plumbing as well. Shown in the photo are Betts staffers (front left to right) Robert Betts, owner; Kim Rexford, owner; Jared Hamre, Larry Humason, Margaret Kelly. (Back left to right) Melanie Collins, Jeff Gagnon, Dave Hoey and Keith DuBoff. |
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 Energy Myths & Realities
"I didn't come here to stir up trouble, but Waxman-Markey is arguably the most asinine piece of legislation in U.S. history," Keith Rattie, chairman, president, and chief executive of natural gas producer Questar Corp. told attendees at the keynote session of the recent POWER-GEN International convention.
PVF e-News tracked down a version of that speech given earlier this year by Rattie, and it makes for enlightening reading.
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| AEC Store Corner
 NEW - Facility Piping Systems Handbook, 3rd Ed. $156.95
A Comprehensive Guide to Facility Piping Systems
Fully up-to-date with the latest codes and standards, this practical resource contains everything you need to plan, select, design, specify, and test piping systems for industry, commercial, and institutional applications. The book includes complete coverage of pipes, fittings, valves, jointing methods, hangers, supports, pumps, tanks, and other required equipment.
Follow this link for a complete description and to view the table of contents.
Visit AECstore.com to view all of our products for Plumbing and PFV Pros. |
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Tech Tip #37 by Gregg Marshall
To help you make the most of the Digital Age.
Portable Printing
If you travel much, eventually you need to print while on the road.
There are lots of options.
One is go to the hotel business center, where they likely will charge you $1.00 to $2.00 per page.
Another is to find a local Kinko's or office supply superstore. Cheaper, but still a lot more than it costs to print at home or at the office.
I've been carrying a portable printer for the past two years.
My first was an HP 460 (http://www.hp.com). It's advantage was that it used the same ink cartridges as a printer at home. But it was relatively bulky, taking more space in my carry-on than I really wanted to give up.
About 18 months ago I switched to a Canon ip90v (http://www.usa.canon.com). It's about half as thick as the HP (although a bit deeper). When I really want to save space/weight, I can power it off my iGo universal power brick instead of taking its already small brick. About my only complaint is the printer cartridges are relatively small, so I carry a spare black and color cartridge.
Both are relatively light, weighing in at about 2 to 3 pounds.
Both printers do great for normal printing. For instance I frequently check in online and can print my boarding passes in the comfort of my hotel room.
They can also print on other media, such as labels, light card stock, etc. That makes them really useful for associations and companies that need a printer at a show.
There are times when having it on paper is really an advantage. Having a portable printer makes it easy and affordable. I may not use it every trip, but having it along is great.
My Canon now has about 150,000 miles of traveling on it and is looking forward to my next overseas trip.
Gregg Marshall, CPMR, CSP, is president of Rep Connection Inc. He can be reached by e-mail at gmarshall@repconnection.com, or visit his LinkedIn profile at
http://www.linkedin.com/in/greggmarshall. |
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What's The Industry Buzzing About?
One way to tell is to visit the website of Supply House Times
. If you scroll to the bottom of the lead page, you will find lists of the "Most E-Mailed" and "Most Popular Articles" (as measured by visitations). This gives a pretty good feel for what industry citizens regard as important.
For example, as of Tuesday, Dec. 29, these were some of the "Most E-mailed" articles from the Supply House Times website.
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Low-Cost Flowmeter 
Shenitech has announced availability of their new third generation STUF-300F1B Wall-Mount Transit-Time Flowmeter. Designed for nonintrusive pipe flow measurement, the STUF-300F1B utilizes a pair of clamp-on, ultrasonic transducers to measure flow from outside the pipe. The flowmeter's +1% accuracy (
+0.5% with on-site calibration), nonintrusive design eliminates contact with process liquids and requires no maintenance. The STUF-300F1B is low-cost, easy to install, set up and use, and accommodates a pipe range from 1" to 240" diameter. |
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BNP Media
2401 W. Big Beaver Road, Ste. 700
Troy, Michigan, 48084-3333
U.S.A. |
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Contact The Editor
PVF e-News is a twice-monthly newsletter edited by Supply House Times Editor Jim Olsztynski. Contact him with any requests, complaints, compliments or information you think worth reporting in this e-newsletter.
1050 IL Rte. 83, Suite 200
Bensenville, IL 60106
630/694-4006
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