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Ecka, Makin caught in copper crunch as auto sales plummet
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Ecka, Makin caught in copper crunch as auto sales plummet Non-ferrous powder manufacturing has received a body blow with filings for insolvency by two leading players in Germany and the UK. Ecka Granulate, the world’s biggest producer of copper powder at around 25 000 tonnes annually, and Makin Metal Powders, a major supplier of copper and other non-ferrous metal powders, called in administrators after banks withdrew credit backing after first quarter figures revealed plunging copper powder sales, mainly associated with automotive supply. An improvement in the second quarter was not enough to persuade creditors top allow the companies to trade their way out of trouble.
Ecka Holding Co filed for insolvency in Germany in mid August. The Ecka Group has atomised and electrolytic production plants at Velden and Trautenfurt in Germany devoted mainly to copper production. Production is expected to continue as the court appointed administrator looks for buyers. Significantly the administration does not extend to Ecka Granulate MicroMet GmbH, or to Ecka Poudmet in France, Ecka Metal Powder in the UK or Ecka Granules of America. The Group’s interests in aluminium and magnesium powders also fall outside the remit of insolvency.
Makin Metal Powders was formed more than 50 years ago and until recently was a wholly owned subsidiary of US Metal Powders. It called in administrators on July 31. A well-placed source inside the company said that although the first quarter figures were “well down” on the levels of the previous year, second quarter levels were improving, a pattern reflected in figures released by PM associations around the world. Administrators at both companies stressed that they were still going concerns, and expressed confidence that buyers would be found. www.ecka-granulate.com www.makin-metals.com
PM takes heavy global punch from recession The heavy price paid by the powder metallurgy industry worldwide in the first half of this year has been revealed by powder shipment figures issued by regional associations. In the North America, Europe and Asia first quarter shipments plummeted before recovering slightly in the second quarter. In North America, which represents about half the global industry, iron powder shipments in the first quarter were 54% of the 2008 level at around 54 000 tons with a slight bounce back to 59% in the second quarter at around 53 500 tons. In Europe the picture was worse, with shipments of just over 22 000 tons representing only 43% of 2008 values. But in Japan first quarter shipments crashed to less than one third of the levels seen in 2008 at less than 11 000 tons. Europe and Japan followed the pattern set in the US by bouncing back slightly in quarter two with both recording levels of between 50% and 60% of 2008 shipment levels. However, the disastrous start to the year is unlikely to be lifted by the second half, where powder shipments tend to decline towards the end of the calendar year. The story was much the same in the copper powder sector where in the US shipment levels in both quarters hovered around the 60% marker. In Europe, copper and copper base powder shipments dropped to 43% at around 1 500 tonnes in the first quarter, recovering slightly in the second quarter.
4
MPR September 2009
0026-0657/09 ©2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Ecka, Makin caught in copper crunch as auto sales plummet Non-ferrous powder manufacturing has received a body blow with filings for insolvency by two leading players in Germany and the UK. Ecka Granulate, the world’s biggest producer of copper powder at around 25 000 tonnes annually, and Makin Metal Powders, a major supplier of copper and other non-ferrous metal powders, called in administrators after banks withdrew credit backing after first quarter figures revealed plunging copper powder sales, mainly associated with automotive supply. An improvement in the second quarter was not enough to persuade creditors top allow the companies to trade their way out of trouble.
Ecka Holding Co filed for insolvency in Germany in mid August. The Ecka Group has atomised and electrolytic production plants at Velden and Trautenfurt in Germany devoted mainly to copper production. Production is expected to continue as the court appointed administrator looks for buyers. Significantly the administration does not extend to Ecka Granulate MicroMet GmbH, or to Ecka Poudmet in France, Ecka Metal Powder in the UK or Ecka Granules of America. The Group’s interests in aluminium and magnesium powders also fall outside the remit of insolvency.
Makin Metal Powders was formed more than 50 years ago and until recently was a wholly owned subsidiary of US Metal Powders. It called in administrators on July 31. A well-placed source inside the company said that although the first quarter figures were “well down” on the levels of the previous year, second quarter levels were improving, a pattern reflected in figures released by PM associations around the world. Administrators at both companies stressed that they were still going concerns, and expressed confidence that buyers would be found. www.ecka-granulate.com www.makin-metals.com
PM takes heavy global punch from recession The heavy price paid by the powder metallurgy industry worldwide in the first half of this year has been revealed by powder shipment figures issued by regional associations. In the North America, Europe and Asia first quarter shipments plummeted before recovering slightly in the second quarter. In North America, which represents about half the global industry, iron powder shipments in the first quarter were 54% of the 2008 level at around 54 000 tons with a slight bounce back to 59% in the second quarter at around 53 500 tons. In Europe the picture was worse, with shipments of just over 22 000 tons representing only 43% of 2008 values. But in Japan first quarter shipments crashed to less than one third of the levels seen in 2008 at less than 11 000 tons. Europe and Japan followed the pattern set in the US by bouncing back slightly in quarter two with both recording levels of between 50% and 60% of 2008 shipment levels. However, the disastrous start to the year is unlikely to be lifted by the second half, where powder shipments tend to decline towards the end of the calendar year. The story was much the same in the copper powder sector where in the US shipment levels in both quarters hovered around the 60% marker. In Europe, copper and copper base powder shipments dropped to 43% at around 1 500 tonnes in the first quarter, recovering slightly in the second quarter.
4
MPR September 2009
0026-0657/09 ©2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.