September 8, 2011 - There seems to be a trend developing with workout bankers to move their credits along a little faster than they had been in the recent past.  According to panelists at the Northeast Regional TMA event in Saratoga Springs, NY on September 1, 2011, many workout bankers are compressing their timelines to resolve issues with difficult credits.  This is very different from the early days of the recession and the post-Lehman days when workout officers were more inclined to 'amend and extend' or otherwise give their troubled borrowers lots of leeway if they were out of covenant.

August 16, 2011 - The August Empire State Manufacturing Survey indicates that conditions for New York manufacturers continued to worsen. The general business conditions index fell four points to -7.7, its third consecutive negative reading. The new orders index also remained below zero, at -7.8, while the shipments index was positive at 3.0. The unfilled orders and inventories indexes dropped further into negative territory. Price indexes continued to retreat, with the prices paid index falling fifteen points to 28.3 and the prices received index falling three points to 2.2. The index for number of employees was slightly positive,

Because we think that powder coating is pretty cool, we wanted to impart some of our knowledge about the process, so that you will think it's cool too.

(Year over Year through April, 2011)

***Below are excerpts from a press release that takes a micro look at the machine tool and metal fabrication space for new machine orders in the US.  The statistics in the report compare year-over-year numbers through April, 2011.  Comparing this information to the recent macro economic trends also outlined in our blog, we are very curious to see what USMTC reports later in the year for Q2 and Q3, 2011.  WIll the micro trend follow the macro trend?***

June 15, 2011 - In the last two and a half years, the market for surplus machinery and equipment has been challenging, to say the least.  Industries that track with the overall health of the economy struggled early in the recession, enjoyed an upturn in the second half of 2010, and are now wondering what to expect next.

April 4, 2011 - In general, demand for commercial construction and construction machinery depends heavily on the health of the USeconomy, including corporate profits and local government budgets.  The construction sector is expected to contract during the remainder of 2011-down 2.3% from 2010-due in large part to the deep cuts in the public sector's capital spending.

In the midst of imagining the Blackbird logo and design I took a much needed break to attend The Worlds Largest Disco (https://www.worldslargestdisco.com/). I found the Blackbird logo that BlackDog Strategy and Brand had recently created strutting all around me in classic, retro wear! Check out the walking confirmations that I encountered.