News

  • PowerTALK™ News, April 2020

    Download PDF

    COVID-19 is the most important issue facing our industry globally in decades, and many of the articles in the April issue of PowerTALK News address the impact of this virus on production. Read about the industry’s reaction to coronavirus around the world in this issue. Be certain to review the video and the presentation slides from the PSR Webinar presented April 15, 2020.


    Download your copy of the presentation here. See the webinar video.

    IN THIS ISSUE
    • Dealing With Coronavirus—A Webinar
    • North America: Is Coronavirus A Natural Disaster
    • North America: High School Builds Face Masks
    • North America: Batteries Are Coming
    • North America: Outdoor COVID-19 Guide
    • Global: Truck Production Slumps
    • DataPoint: Skid Steer Loaders
    • Europe: COVID-19 Update
    • Brazil: Marcopolo Resumes Production
    • Brazil: Trailer Production Recovery Seen
    • Brazil: Q1 2020 Motorcycle To Drop
    • Brazil: First Foton Produced
    • China: NS6 Regulation Delayed
    • Japan: COVID-19 Hits OEMs
    • Korea: Doosan Hikes SNS Promotions
    • Southeast Asia: COVID-19 Shuts Auto Plants
    • Taiwan: Coronavirus Controlled
    • India: COVID-19 Report
    • Russia: Automakers Resume Work
    • Russia: Ambulance Purchases Planned
    • Russia: Market Decline Forecast

  • Outdoor Recreation Group Creates COVID-19 Guide

    The Outdoor Recreation Roundtable (ORR), a coalition of outdoor recreation trade associations and organizations, has published on their web site (www.recreationalroundtable .org) a guide for their members on the Outdoor Recreation Industry and the Coronavirus. Included on the site are Federal, State and Industry Resources, ORR’s letter to the President, Governors and Federal Government on the impact and recommendations to the Coronavirus crisis.

    The site also has suggestions on what small businesses…

    Read More »

  • STA Uses 3D Printers To Produce Face Shields for Health Care Workers

    MENDOTA HEIGHTS, MN–Students at St. Thomas Academy High School in suburban Minneapolis, Minnesota, are using 3D printers in their Innovation Center to produce face shields for first responders and medical personnel who are battling the coronavirus.

    The school has garnered some national exposure for the manufacturing work it has done with its 3D printers, including time on an ABC News broadcast and a nice article in the St. Paul (Minnesota) Pioneer Press newspaper.

    Power Systems Research is a co-founder of the Innovation Center that’s part of the company’s effort to support STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) programs at local high schools.

    Read More »

  • Q1 2020 Power Systems Research Truck Production Index (PSR-TPI) falls 31.1%

    and
    Download PDF

    ST. PAUL, MN — The Power Systems Research Truck Production Index (PSR-TPI) decreased from 122 to 84, or 31.1%, for the three-month period ended March 31, 2020, from Q4 2019. The year-over-year (Q1 2019 to Q1 2020) loss for the PSR-TPI was, 116 to 84, or 27.6%.

    The PSR-TPI measures truck production globally and across six regions: North America, China, Europe, South America, Japan & Korea and Emerging Markets.

    This data comes from CV Link™, the proprietary database maintained by Power Systems Research.

    All Regions: Prior to the spread of the Coronavirus, most regions were experiencing a slowdown in commercial truck demand. Depending on the duration of the virus, several countries are expected to slip into recession or a significant economic slowdown as a result.

    Global Index: The possibility of a global recession now exists but it is uncertain how severe this may be. Some regions will fair better than others.

    North America: The introduction of the Coronavirus along with an overcapacity of heavy trucks will lead to significantly lower demand in 2020. Prior to the Coronavirus outbreak, concerns about the Chinese tariffs and an overall slowdown in global economic growth were causing some headwinds for truck demand. PSR

    Jim Downey is Vice President – Global Data Products at Power Systems Research

    Chris Fisher is the Senior Commercial Vehicle Analyst at Power Systems Research

  • Pandemic Leads to Accelerating Losses For NA Gen-Set Dealers in Q1 2020

    SUMMARY: Gen-set sales in Q1 2020 fell 9.8% from Q4 2019, as the United States faces perhaps its most serious economic and public health crisis since the Great Depression. No power range was immune to the decline.

    Sales in the 51-100kW range dropped 13%, the largest drop of any range, while the 101-300kW range faired the best, only shedding 6.5% of sales from Q4 2019.

    The losses were felt fairly evenly across applications, with temporary power falling the least at 7%, and standbys the most at 10%. Looking by customer type, commercial sales had their worst first quarter in at least the last five years, falling by 9.5%.

    Read More »

  • Coronavirus Has Major Impact on Global Production of Off-Highway Equipment and Medium & Heavy-Duty Vehicles

    , , , , , , ,

    Download Your PDF Copy of the Presentation

    https://youtu.be/nwrwDpOAZgQ

    ST. PAUL, MN–A team of international analysts from Power Systems Research (PSR) analyzed the impact of COVID-19 on the global production of Off-Highway Equipment and MH-Duty Vehicles in several regions today.

    The team examined the impact of the coronavirus in North America, Europe, Asia, India, and South America for the remainder of 2020 and into Q1 2021.  Download your copy of the presentation here.

    Read More »

  • Unprecedented Times Call for Extraordinary Measures

    Download our special report CORONAVIRUS, Impact on the global production for engines and powered equipment. Available April 15, 2020.

    Joe Zirnhelt
    Joe Zirnhelt

    Over the first quarter of 2020 the concern over the coronavirus has grown each week.  Since first hearing the news out of China and the virus’ spread to South Korea, we have been able to observe the effects on supply chains and production.  

    Time is of the essence

    Although news and concern increased since that time, the week of March 10 and the classification of the coronavirus as a pandemic by the World Health Organization dramatically shifted many measures into action across the globe.

    Read More »

  • Is COVID-19 a Natural Disaster?

    In late March, about halfway through the United States’ first round of social distancing, Generac CEO Aaron Jagdfeld spoke with Yahoo Finance’s Seana Smith about whether Generac was seeing a spike in demand from COVID-19.

    Tyler Wiegert
    Tyler Wiegert

    Smith noted that the power generation segment tends to do better during and after a natural disaster, and wanted to know the answer to a question that has also been on our minds at Power Systems Research: “Is COVID-19 a Natural Disaster?”

    Like many of the other questions surrounding COVID-19, like “Is the United States heading into a recession?” or “How do we distribute scarce medical resources?” the answer isn’t clear cut.

    Additionally, hotels and other buildings are being converted into temporary hospitals as states prepare for their regular ICUs to reach capacity. He states that those buildings might not have typically had back-up power, but now need to be quickly outfitted to meet regulations for critical care centers.

    Read More »

  • Batteries Are Coming. We Saw Lots of Them at CONEXPO and GIE+Expo

    Recently I was at a dinner with visiting members of my family discussing the noble transition that many manufacturers are making from producing their typical goods to producing essential goods and equipment for the coronavirus fight.

    Tyler Wiegert
    Tyler Wiegert

    One that came up was Tesla’s transition to making ventilators, and one member of my family began to say that they wouldn’t want a Tesla ventilator if they were hospitalized, because it would probably catch fire and explode.

    My fiance is in medicine rather than in our industry, so she took that to be a serious comment about the risk of ventilators sparking in an oxygen-rich environment. But it quickly became clear that this critic just has a deep and abiding skepticism of battery technology, because they repeatedly brought the conversation back to battery fires and cars exploding, despite there having been only 14 reported cases of Tesla vehicles catching fire between 2013 and 2019, with most of those happening after accidents.

    Read More »

  • Dealing With Coronavirus

    , , , , , , ,

    At Power Systems Research our business is based on being informed: Globally, and in several important industry segments.

    Even as the coronavirus affects markets and industries and companies worldwide, we’re continuing to work effectively for our clients. We’re adjusting our operations hourly to meet the changing needs caused by coronavirus. Our IT staff has adapted PSR systems so our analysts around the world can work at home and communicate easily and effectively with each other and with the home office.

    Read More »

Filter News Posts

Reset

Current Reports

Download complimentary reports that show the type of information available from Power Systems Research.

PowerTALK News

Stay informed each month with insights from Power Systems Research analysts working around the world as they identify and comment on important news items in the company’s monthly newsletter.

Subscribe
View Archive