Tag: Good NEws for Precision Machining Companies

Harley Davidson to Export Fat Boys To India

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Repost from Automotive Newswire March 5, 2013.

Fat Boy motorcycles will be exported as kits to India for local assembly and sale.
Fat Boy motorcycles will be exported as kits to India for local assembly and sale.

“In a region dominated for decades by two-wheeled motorized travel it looked like the sun was about to set as Indian auto manufacturers set their goals toward getting Indians into four-wheeled vehicles with a roof.  The cheap Tata Nano was supposed to put an end to all of that two-wheeled transport and several auto manufacturers followed suit with new small cars developed for the Indian market and aimed at protecting those blue suede shoes from getting muddy.

“Whoops.  Indian’s don’t wear blue suede shoes.  And indeed, they love their motorcycles.  While Tata is revamping the Nano to attempt to make it successful, Harley-Davidson is expanding dramatically in India.

“Harley-Davidson announced this week that it will assemble the “Fat Boy,” “Fat Boy Special” and “Heritage Softail Classic models in India.  The cycles will be imported as kits and assembled locally offering a savings in import taxes.

“Assembly of the models will be done at Bawal, where Harley already assembles 12 other models for the Indian market.

Each Harley Davidson motorcycle represents  added value from the precision machining industry in a number of components. Export sales of Harley Davidsons are export sales of precision machined products.

This is good news.

Fat Boy

Heavy Truck Sales Improving In 2011- Paccar

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Good news for precision machining companies and those looking for a continued economic recovery.

Increased Heavy Truck Sales Can Mean "Green" For Your Precision Machining Shop.

Paccar Inc. (Manufacturer of Kenworth and Peterbilt trucks) predicted that 2011 will be the best year for commercial truck sales in five years, according to a recent report from Dow Jones business News (link below).
The company increased its industry-wide sales forecast for the U.S. and Canada to between 200,000 and 220,000 heavy-duty trucks this year, up from 180,000 to 200,000 vehicles forecast in February.
The revised outlook represents about a 65 percent increase from 2010’s sales volume and would be the highest sales level since 2006.
Two factors that could upset this forecast include:
1) Suppliers having difficulty keeping up with orders for components due to the industry slowdown;
2) Exposure to Japanese component suppliers whose operations have been disrupted by the earthquake and tsunami and ongoing power shortages;
Why we’re optimistic about Heavy Truck Market Recovery:
Paccar CEO Mark Pigott predicted that second-quarter deliveries of Paccar trucks will increase by 15 percent to 20 percent from the first quarter. The company has added shifts at assembly plants and added employees to its workforce, according to the original Dow Jones story here on the Heavy Duty Manufacturers Association  (HDMA) website..
“The orders are strong,” he said. “We’ve got an [order] backlog out to July and August. It looks reasonably good.”
Heavy Truck market has been highly cyclical and sales down for precision machining companies since 2007.
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