The lull in metals prices is over for now. December copper rose 1.05 cent to $3.0015 a pound recently on the New York Mercantile Exchange. And, as The Associated Press reports this week, copper rose 2.4 percent on the London Metal Exchange, where zinc jumped 3.8 percent; lead gained 6.2 percent and nickel traded 1.9 percent higher.

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association's Primary Industrial Controls Index registered a 0.6 percent gain between the second and third quarters of 2007, and "rose more than 12 percent higher compared with the same period a year ago," according to NEMA:

Although measures of confidence among manufacturers have slipped in recent months, indicators of the industrial sector's performance have remained in solid shape. … [While] many businesses are beginning to wrap up their major capital spending projects of the past few years, enough demand should remain in the pipeline to keep durable goods production expanding through 2008.

Meanwhile, United States demand for industrial controls is forecast to rise 2.9 percent annually through 2011 to $15.billion," according to market research engine Reportlinker.com (via Sensors Magazine).

However, let's not lump all controls together.

"Demand for advanced controls is expected to continue to grow more rapidly than that of conventional controls, as the advanced type provide superior performance and production capabilities," according to Reportlinker.com. "Industrial control-related software and system integration services will continue to bolster overall demand in the advanced controls segment."

Growth was slightly stronger for the primary industrial controls and adjustable speed drives index, which is a broader measure of demand for industrial control equipment, as it increased 2.5 percent from the second quarter and 12.8 percent versus the third quarter of 2006, explains NEMA.

The demand for controls has not remained uniform for all industries.

For instance, "pockets of weakness do exist, namely domestic auto manufacturers and industries tied heavily to the residential construction sector," cautions NEMA. Further, "advances will be restrained ... by a relatively mature U.S. market for these products as well as by competition from personal computers programmed to perform control-related functions," Reporterlinker forecasts.

Unsurprisingly, durable goods industries accounted for 61 percent of industrial control demand in 2006. Industrial controls are highly used by electrical and electronic equipment and machinery manufacturers. Perhaps surprisingly, though, service industries are expected to be the fastest-growing market for industrial controls through 2011, "supported by strong growth in business service revenues. Industrial controls are used by a number of different types of service businesses, primarily for repair/maintenance or motor-containing machinery and equipment," explains Reportlinker.com.

To illustrate just one example of what happens by making a control change, consider this remark from a case history posted at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Web site:

Natural Gas STAR partners have reported savings of up to 70,000 thousand cubic feet (Mcf) per year per facility by replacing natural gas-powered pneumatic systems with instrument air systems, representing annual savings of up to $210,000 per facility. Partners have found that most investments to convert pneumatic systems pay for themselves in just over one year.

This replacement also results in less methane emission, reducing the greenhouse gas load in the atmosphere and perhaps making the workplace safer for employees and neighbors.

No matter how you evaluate your controls, replacing older conventional controls with newer advanced ones could lead to substantial savings.

Resources

Base Metals Rally as Dollar Slumps
by Lauren Villagran
The Associated Press (via Houston Chronicle), Nov. 26, 2007

Demand for Industrial Controls Continues to Rise During Third Quarter of 2007
National Electrical Manufacturers Association, Nov. 9, 2007

Focus on the US Industrial Controls Market
Reportlinker.com (via Sensors Magazine), Nov. 19, 2007

Convert Gas Pneumatic Controls to Instrument Air
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency