JWE News

Wall Street Journal Survey

A Wall Street Journal survey of Small business manufacturing CEO’s in April showed a definite feeling of optimism. Companies with $5-9 million in sales: 58.9% increase in sales, 28.5% remain the same, 8.9% decrease in sales. Companies with $10-20 million in sales: 63.63% sales increase, 27.2% remain the same, and 9.1% sales decrease. How is the Overall Economy vs a year ago: 32.3% improved, 52.8% remained the same and 14.3% worsened.

JACQUET West now stocks 310S stainless steel

JACQUET West has just brought in a few thicknesses of 310S stainless steel. SAE 310 stainless steel is a highly alloyed austenitic stainless steel used for high temperature application up to 2,100°F. The high chromium and nickel content give the steel excellent oxidation resistance as well as high strength at high temperature. This grade is also very ductile, and has good weldability enabling its widespread usage in many applications. 310 / 310S find wide application in all high-temperature environments where scaling and corrosion resistance, as well as high temperature strength and good creep resistance are required.

JACQUET West is soon to be stocking nickel alloys 400 & 625

JACQUET West has ordered inventory in alloys 400 and 625 in gauges .25" thick up through .75" thick. Alloy 400 is alloyed copper and nickel and perfect for seawater corrosion resistance. And Alloy 625 is a nickel- based superalloy that possesses high strength properties and resistance to elevated temperatures. It also demonstrates remarkable protection against corrosion and oxidation. Its ability to withstand high stress and a wide range of temperatures, both in and out of water, as well as being able to resist corrosion.

Manufacturing jobs update

Manufacturing added only 4000 jobs in April, with the net gain coming entirely in non-durable goods. This was in contrast to the overall strong jobs report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Total nonfarm employment rose by 263,000 jobs in April. The US unemployment rate dropped to 3.6% from 3.8% in March. A more than 49 year low. Some durable goods categories posted gains, including semiconductors, transportation and miscellaneous manufacturing. While others posted losses, including machinery, primary metals and motorized vehicles and parts. Manufacturing jobs had peaked in June of 1979 at 19.7 million jobs (not seasonally adjusted). Then dropped to a low of 11.34 million jobs unadjusted in February 2010 due to the severe recession. Most recently they have risen to 12.83 million jobs unadjusted as of April 2019.

JACQUET West achieves ISO-9001 and AS-9100 certification

Following an 8 month long process JACQUET West is pleased to announce achieving ISO-9001 and AS-9100 certification. That means all four locations in the US are now ISO-9001 certified. JACQUET West is now also listed in the OASIS aerospace supplier system. General Manager – Chris Weber - said this was one of his primary goals when arriving at JACQUET West 15 months ago. ISO and AS certification validates that your process is sound, your people are trained and tested, and your suppliers are validated to the highest quality standards.

North American Oil & Gas Rig Counts

US active rig counts have increased from 978 in 2018 up to 1047 in February 2019. Canadian rig counts have dropped from 306 to 212 in the same time span.

JACQUET West now offers water injection plasma cutting

Water injection cutting uses water to constrict the plasma arc rather than nitrogen or argon-hydrogen. This offers a smoother cut edge and minimizes dross. This also greatly minimizes the heat affected zone and less chance of plate warpage due to heat. This is available for a slight premium over standard plasma cutting and up to 2.0” thick.

Mill Price Increases

Allegheny Technologies and North American Stainless both announced price increases for March 1, 2019. ATI announced that 200, 300, 400 and duplex grades will increase $.05/lb and PH grades up 3-6%. This is “necessary to support continued growth and investment in our business”. NAS announced that 304/304L will increase $.04/lb and 316/316L $.06/lb for Discrete plate. Long products had slightly different price increases.

Mill Surcharges

Mill surcharges for March are up $.0464/lb for 304/304L and up $.0556/lb for 316/316L. Nickel has increased on the spot market from $5.23/lb on 1/24 up tp $5.85/lb on 2/26.

Mill Fuel Surcharges

North American Stainless has announced that Fuel Surcharges are being increased to 25% for March shipments.

Mill Surcharges: Surcharges announced for January went down another $.06 for 304 and $.063 for 316 by North American Stainless with similar announcements by Allegheny Technologies and Outokumpu Stainless. They each have slightly different calculations, slight pennies different but with similar results up and down. Nickel specifically looks to be rising slightly through January. Starting at $4.74/lb and as of the 28th $5.37/lb on the spot market. NAS announced surcharges for February that dropped less than $0.005 for 304 and $0.016 for 316L.

High Definition plasma: JACQUET West is pleased to announce that we have reinstated High Definition plasma cutting up through 3.0” thick. For a slight additional charge we offer high definition plasma cutting with cleaner edges and less taper. High definition plasma cutting is a nice option between standard plasma cutting and water jet cutting with a cost closer to plasma and relatively affordable.

On Time Delivery: On Time Delivery (OTD) has been a sore spot for many metal service centers over the years. Some do very well keeping above 90 or 95% on an on-going basis. JACQUET West has been plagued with infrastructure and equipment problems over the years, and has had a poor reputation for OTD. We are located near a refinery, which seems to affect the electrical power grid in the area, especially considering the high voltage and heavy power needed to run our processing equipment. Over the past year we have invested in electrical “conditioners” in front of our main processing equipment. Invested in a strong machine maintenance program and replaced some of the older electrical wiring and equipment. We think we have minimized the electrical issues and improved our up time. For 2018 we finished with 93% On Time Delivery for the year.

Import tariffs have hit most imports of stainless steel including from Europe, Asia (inc China, S. Korea and Japan), and South America. We buy from domestic mills when we can but also buy from a European mill that is subject to tariffs. Even with a 25% tariff they are competitive with one domestic mill. And they are the only mill that can produce material above 3” thick. They produce material up to 6” thick in a wide variety of grades. Interesting note that tariffs have not hit nickel alloys, because they are not considered a “steel” The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) issued by the Institute of Supply Management (ISM), is at 54.1 as of the end of December. Anything above 50 is a positive sign. It was at 59.3 at the end of November. This 5 point drop has created some concern with economists, could that foreshadow a slow down?

JACQUET West is pleased to announce it’s participation in numerous trade shows including: Power Gen Show, FabTech Show, West Tech Show as well as attending some of the Design-2-Part Shows, AeroDef Show, Wine & Grape Symposium, AG Show and more.

Allegheny Technologies moved from an operating loss of $91 million in 2017, to a $220 million profit in 2018. With the exception of their HRPF, the balance of their major markets, especially aerospace, where strong and quite busy. Their HRPF (Hot Rolled & Processing Facility) is only running at 40% capacity. Their planned joint venture with the Indonesion affiliate of the Chinese Tsingshan Group has been hampered by the Section 232 tariffs. They have applied for exemptions from the tariffs and three domestic mills have filed rebuttals, but the final ruling has not been issued yet.