Opinion
Indicator ...
... of the industrial economy is the machine tool industry. If the manufacturing industry is skeptical about the future, machine manufacturers are usually the first to feel the effects: customers cancel or postpone their orders. Conversely, a good order situation indicates an optimistic mood in production; confidence that future investments will pay off.
The situation looks surprisingly rosy at the moment. If you follow our reporting online or in the magazine, you have recently read numerous very positive articles about quarterly or annual balance sheets. The order situation for most machine tool manufacturers is very good, despite all the current crises, wars and disasters.
The problem is rather to process the orders. Figuratively speaking, some companies are in danger of starving to death in front of a full plate because there is a lack of qualified employees, resources or components to turn the order into a finished product. In the end, the only thing that counts is the money that arrives in the account as the price of the finished product - orders don't pay the bills.
This will certainly also be a topic in the halls of Messe Stuttgart in mid-September when the industry meets at AMB. After a four-year break due to the coronavirus, there will once again be an opportunity for personal discussions and hands-on experience of the latest technologies. As the INDUSTRIAL Production editorial team, we will be on board. The intensive trade fair season in May and June has shown that this is possible again.
Perhaps we'll see you there - or three weeks later in the same place at Motek?
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