Number of U.S. Industrial Plant Start-Ups Decrease in 2004 When Compared to 2003

---

Researched by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas). So far, in 2004, 286 new industrial plants have begun operations in the U.S. The top four industries for new plant start-ups in 2004 are the food & beverage industry, the industrial manufacturing industry, the pharmaceutical-biotech industry, and power industry, respectively. These 286 plants will ultimately employ in excess of 26,000 salaried and hourly workers. The two largest plants to begin operations this year include Hyundai Motor America’s new 1,500 employee automotive manufacturing plant in Montgomery, Alabama, and Genentech Incorporated’s (NYSE:DNA)(South San Francisco, California) 1,000-employee biopharmaceutical research and development facility in South San Francisco, California.

Click on the image at right to view the 2004 U.S. Industrial plant start-ups by industry chart.

When comparing 2004 plant start-ups with 2003’s results, several interesting trends emerge. The total number of new plant start-ups has significantly decreased from 420 in 2003 to 286 and counting in 2004. The drop off in new plant start-ups in 2004 can mainly be attributed a decrease in the number of new power and industrial manufacturing industry plants coming online. For example, in 2003, there were 92 power plants which came online and in 2004 only 36. Also, the number of new compressor stations coming online this year dropped to six, from 47 in 2003. Industries experiencing increases in plant start-ups this year include the food and beverage industry, which increased from 49 to 69, and the pharmaceutical-biotech industry, which has increased from 33 to 47.

During 2003, research identified 420 new industrial plant start-ups from grassroot construction and/or plant relocations in the U.S. As illustrated in the attached graph (click on the image at right to view), the Power, Pharmaceutical, Transmission and Synthetic Fuels Industries provided the most positive signs of growth with the most new plant activity in 2003.

As of the beginning of December 2004, Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas) is tracking 126 industrial plants, which are scheduled to begin commercial operation during the fourth quarter of 2004. This represents a significant amount of new plant activity when compared to the previous twelve-month’s performance. However, start-up of the majority of these new plants will be delayed into the first quarter of 2005.

Detailed quarterly updates of new plants coming online are analyzed in Industrialinfo.com’s recently released 2005 Global Industrial Outlook. Forecasts are based on actual phone verified information derived from industrialinfo.com’s industrial plant database. New plant activity is derived from grassroot plant construction and plant relocations. Plant contact information, as well as addresses and phone numbers for all the plants mentioned in this article can be access using Industrialinfo.com’s Online Plant Directory. Click the link for a free demonstration of this affordable product.

View Plant Profile - 1057265 1053762

Industrialinfo.com is the leading provider of global industrial market research. We specialize in helping companies develop information solutions to maximize their sales and marketing efforts.