In a recent survey conducted by LoSasso Advertising and Techspex, more than 1,000 members of the metalworking industry responded to a variety of questions about the state of their businesses and trends within the industry. More than 700 of the survey participants answered an optional question regarding the election this November. A whopping 62 percent of participants support McCain. Twenty-five percent show support for Obama and 13 percent choose “Other.”

The purpose of the research was to assess business and operational trends and to gain insight on perceptions regarding the outlook for the U.S. metalworking and manufacturing industry.

Other highlights:

• When asked about their perceptions of the most serious threats to their company’s success:
  • Three-fourths of respondents selected finding qualified labor, making it the number one threat.
  • The cost of raw materials was ranked as number two, with 70 percent of respondents citing this as a potential threat.
  • And general economic conditions came in as a close third, with 66 percent of participant responses.
• While growth may be more difficult than last year, more companies reported growth than decline by a margin of 43 percent to 29 percent. The remaining 27 percent promisingly report that business is steady.
• Consistent with December 2007 results, the majority of the metalworking industry is still experiencing positive business conditions. Sixty-eight percent of respondents reported that business is ‘steady’ or ‘up’. Only 10 percent of participants reported that business is ‘significantly down’.
• When asked about their company’s current outlook, 72 percent of the 2007 survey participants forecasted market growth, while only 7 percent predicted a decline. Respondents of 2008 still have considerable optimism with 66 percent predicting market growth and only 11 percent expecting a decline.

Results of LoSasso Advertising’s 2007 survey were already posted on metalworkingblogs.com in a May 5, 2008 blog, and more recent results will be posted in the near future.

For convenient update notifications, subscribe via e-mail or your preferred RSS reader.