Heavy industry has been a high-profile victim of the global economic downturn and castings activity has been no different; with most of the foundry industry’s products consumed by automotive applications and mechanical engineering sectors, lower demand has been all but inevitable.
The effect of the 2009 downturn on foundries was perhaps the more dramatic than the recession of the early 1990s – with castings activity estimated to have dropped by around 35% by German foundry association, Bundesverband der Deutschen Gießerei-Industrie (BDG).
Foundries have struggled to push capacity utilisation above 60-65% and it is predicted that production increases in 2010 may not be enough to strengthen profits significantly.
So what now for foundries? And what market opportunities can foundry minerals tap into?
Automotive trends
Automotive engineering is the most important customer sector for the foundry industry. Worldwide this market saw lower demand...