Industrialinfo.com Is Tracking 60 Chemical Plant Maintenance Turnarounds Planned for the First Quarter of 2003

---

Researched by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas). The first quarter of 2003 appears to be replaying similar results to the first quarter of 2002 performance of chemical plant maintenance turnarounds. Industrialinfo.com has identified 60 Chemical Processing Industry (CPI) plant maintenance turnarounds that are proposed to kick-off during the first three months of 2003, representing a total investment value (TIV) of approximately $249 million or an average TIV of $4.2 million. The first quarter of 2002 was projected to be near $274 million and 68 turnarounds.

The CPI plants in the Southeast and Southwest represent over 50% of the total and not surprisingly nearly 75% of the TIV. There are very few agricultural products plants such as fertilizer and pesticide producers with turnarounds planned during the first quarter as these producers traditionally run at near or full capacity during this time in preparation for spring plantings.

"We expect maintenance spending to remain strong during 2003 as producers continue to focus on not only repairs and replacement projects but energy reliability improvements and upgrades that can be accomplished with maintenance dollars," commented Trey Hamblet, Chemical Group Manager with Industrialinfo.com. "Maintenance turnarounds in CPI plants often equal several weeks of production downtime and pose a significant opportunity for equipment vendors and suppliers," Mr. Hamblet added.

Industrialinfo.com's recently released 2003 Industrial Outlook provides quarterly updates on upcoming capital and maintenance spending statistics by market region and by industry. Click the image at the right to try out the free demo.