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First FOTON Produced in New Brazil Plant
The first units of the 3.5-ton LCV have been assembled at the GEFCO Plant in Guaíba-RS as the company begins producing under a manufacturing contract for Foton.
Source: AutoData Read The Article
PSR Analysis:
Despite this news, the speed of the development of the new line will be reduced by COVID-19 and related factors, including the social restrictions and workforce mobility, the impact in the LCV segment and also the lack of parts from China, major part of the content…
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Q1 2020 Motorcycle Production in Brazil Was Strong But Will Drop in April
Different from the segments with 4 wheels or more, Motorcycles plants worked normally in March. The total production has been of 296 k motorcycles in the first quarter, about 7% above the same period of 2019. However, the stops in this sector started March 30 and will remain until the beginning of May.
Source: AutoData Read The Article
PSR Analysis:
Although motorcycles are also a way of delivering packages in big Cities, sales of motorcycles in Brazil have a closer relationship…
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Brazil Trailer Production Recovery Forecasted for September
In an interview April 9 with AutoData, the CEOs of 4Truck and Librelato pointed to a heavy recovery for transportation and the trailers business in September. The companies seem optimistic about the recovery from the COVID-19 crisis in Brazil.
Source: AutoData Read The Article
PSR Analysis:
The trailer segment, as well as the class 7 and class 8 segments, were enjoying a growth trend before the COVID-19 social restrictions were imposed. In the beginning of the quarantine period,…
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Marcopolo Resumes Production After COVID-19 Shutdown
Marcopolo started producing again April 13 after a break forced by COVID-19 control measures. The plants of Caxias do Sul and Duque de Caxias are producing again with lowered output. The number of workers is reduced and the space between people is expanded, among other measures for safety purposes. The São Mateus plant has not reopened.
Source: AutoData Read The Article
PSR Analysis:
The current scenario points to a heavy impact on the Bus market due to reduced customer traffic…
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COVID-19 Update: Europe Slowly Resuming Production
April 21, 2020–After four weeks of lockdown, some European countries are slowly lifting restrictions, allowing industrial production and some commercial operations to restart, and restoring some freedoms to their citizens.

Emiliano Marzoli In Italy, this week represents a key moment as some industries can resume production. Agricultural and Lawn&Garden OEMs can reopen their factories, although respecting strict regulations that will reduce factory capacity. The same is happening in Spain starting April 13, with all segments resuming work, but with differences across regions. Moreover, many OEMs were not able to meet the new working regulations and could not resume production.
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DataPoint: 2020 Production Estimate, NA Skid Steer Loaders
105,900 units is the estimate by Power Systems Research of the number of Skid Steer Loaders to be produced in North America (Canada and the United States) in 2020.
This information comes from industry interviews and from two proprietary databases maintained by Power Systems Research: EnginLink™ , which provides information on engines, and OE Link™, a database of equipment manufacturers.
Market Share: With 35% of total units produced, Bobcat leads in production of Skid Steer Loaders in North America. In second and third positions are Case New Holland and Caterpillar with 22.5% and 14.5%, respectively.
Exports: Collectively, up to 30% worldwide.
Trends: Production of skid steer loaders in North America increased 3% in 2019 over 2018. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, production was expected to remain flat with a nominal decrease of ½% in 2020. This decline will be more severe with plant shutdowns etc., due to current virus concerns. Overall, loader production could plummet up to 40% this year.
As the construction industry recovers, construction will continue to be a key driver in overall industry growth. Flat sales can be attributed to the American agriculture industry that is sluggish (still battling commodity prices) that accounts for 29% of all skid steer usage in the market today. Expect production of Skid Steer Loaders in North America to increase up to 5% over the next 3-5 years. PSR
Carol Turner is Senior Analyst, Global Operations
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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.
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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%.
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Coronavirus Has Major Impact on Global Production of Off-Highway Equipment and Medium & Heavy-Duty Vehicles
Download Your PDF Copy of the Presentation
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.
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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.
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