Month: April 2012

March ISM Report Shows Manufacturing Continues To Grow

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“The PMI registered 53.4 percent, an increase of 1 percentage point from February’s reading of 52.4 percent, indicating expansion in the manufacturing sector for the 32nd consecutive month. The Production Index increased 3 percentage points from February’s reading of 55.3 percent to 58.3 percent, and the Employment Index increased 2.9 percentage points to 56.1 percent. Of the 18 industries included in the survey, 15 are experiencing overall growth.”

This is what all these numbers mean...

Primary Metals and Fabricated Metals are two of the industries showing continued growth.

Steel, Aluminum, Copper, Oil and Fuel were all reported to be up in price; Steel was also reported lower in price in certain markets.

PMPA’s February Business Trends Report showed respondents sales to be up 11% over same month last year. Average length of first shift for february was 43.7 hours- 62 % of shops reporting were scheduling more than 40 hour shifts.

The PMPA Business Trends Report confirms the ISM findings regarding the continuing growth / expansion of manufacturing. Like the ISM Manufacturing PMI Report, and our Fabricated Metal market sector, the precision machining industry is maintaining a growing sales base, positive trends, and increased employment.

That’s how we see it.

How does it look where you are?

ISM Report March 2012

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Can Radioactive Scrap Contaminate Your Business?

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145 nuclear items were identified in scrap worldwide in 2011, 200 in 2010.

The most recent one we’ve learned about involves Cobalt 60 contamination of a metal tissue cover box sold through Bed Bath And Beyond.

"The level of exposure from holding a contaminated
tissue-box holder against the body for an hour is equivalent to a chest X-ray," according to the NRC.

Despite the “assurances” of the NRC officials, chronic exposures to low doses of radiation can lead to cataracts, cancer and birth defects according to the USEPA (see chronic exposure page in link). Cobalt 60 is both a beta and gamma emitter. One of the problems with beta emissions is that they lack the ability to travel, so their effects concentrate where they are stopped.  Gamma emissions have high energy and penetrating power.

Most people keep their tissues on the night stand by the head of the bed. Get the picture?

They keep their tissues by the head of the bed...

If radioactive materials came into your shop, how would you know?

Fortunately, every North American steel melt shop that I have visited takes a number of steps to assure that they do not accept radioactive scrap or materials in bound, and have positive means to test  when original melt lab work is done.

Radiation detectors at truck scales, train gates, and at detectors at sample prep stations in the melt shop lab are just some of the means that the special bar quality mills I’ve worked at or visited use to assure that radioactive materials do not get into the product stream.

But that level of security does not exist everywhere, as the Bed Bath and Beyond Tissue Box shows us.

Bloomberg reports that U.S. Department of Homeland Security data shows that India and China were the top sources of radioactive goods shipped to the US through 2008.

These countries lack the protections that we have come to expect here in North America like entry exit gate detectors.

Bottom line: Radioactive materials can  and do “go wild” in the marketplace. Responsible steelmakers have means to assure quality.

Know who you buy from. Reputable North American Steel Producers have this figured out.

Truck Shipping Gate Radiation Detector

Tissue box Photo

Homer Simpson Head X-ray