Alcoa posts quarterly loss on aluminum slump

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Aluminum producer Alcoa Inc (AA.N) reported a second consecutive quarterly loss on Tuesday, as metal prices and the autos industry slumped and global demand fell in the economic downturn.

In response to the tough times, Alcoa -- the first member of the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI to report -- has cut thousands of jobs, slashed its dividend, trimmed spending and raised $1.3 billion to help it through the slowdown.

"There's no doubt in my mind that we are in for a really nasty earnings season," said Keith Wirtz, president and chief investment officer of Fifth Third Asset Management. "Alcoa's second consecutive quarterly loss is testament to that. We are in the worse phase of this recession right now."

But on a conference call with Wall Street analysts, Alcoa Chief Executive Officer Klaus Kleinfeld was more upbeat, despite weakness in demand from industries it supplies.

"In the U.S., we are seeing the first signs of markets stabilizing at lower levels," he said.

Auto industry demand is down 18 percent globally and is worse in the United States, he said, "but the U.S. residential (construction) market might see some signs of bottoming out."

But Kleinfeld repeated his forecast that global aluminum consumption will decline 7 percent this year, although he is hopeful government stimulus action will revive metal demand.

Alcoa's first-quarter net loss was $497 million, or 61 cents per share, compared with a profit of $303 million, or 37 cents, in the 2008 quarter, the Pittsburgh-based company said. The loss from continuing operations was 59 cents per share.

Revenue fell 36 percent to $4.1 billion from $6.5 billion a year earlier after excluding divested businesses.

According to Reuters Estimates, the company actually lost 60 cents per share, excluding a write-off and gain from two transactions in the quarter. That missed analysts' estimate for a loss of 55 cents, Reuters Estimates said.

TRIMMING THEIR SAILS

Kleinfeld said in a press statement the steps the company has taken so far to cut costs should significantly improve its profitability and cash flow in 2009 and beyond.

"We also see both near-term and long-term catalysts that should improve the prospects for the aluminum industry," he said. "Current stimulus programs that target infrastructure and energy efficiency will create a demand for ... aluminum.

But Alcoa expects second-quarter alumina production to drop slightly as it cuts refinery production to meet smelter demand. Alumina, refined from bauxite, is smelted into aluminum.

The company also sees continued end market weakness for its flat-rolled products in the aerospace, construction and global transportation sectors in the second quarter.
http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSTRE53649Y20090408

Martin introduce carriage house doors in aluminum

Martin carriage house doors in aluminum offer almost all of the features of wood, without any of the heavy maintenance or the safety liabilities.

The aluminum doors feature Martin's patented FingerShield joint design as well as over 30 safety and quality items that are standard with each Martin Door.

"This door is the best in its class.

In fact, the Carriage House Collection Aluminum Doors are in a class all their own," David Martin, chairman of MDM, said of the door.

The doors will come in over 70 powder coat colors and include 1/4" thick antique hinges and handles in black or silver.

The doors are only available with a powder coat finish.

The door is almost maintenance free, according to Martin, because of the aluminum and powder coating.

The door comes with a lifetime warranty with few limitations.

Even the door's hardware lasts long on the super strong door because of its lightweight aluminum, according to Martin.

The door features a true 3-D design, he added.

The benefits of the new carriage house look to traditional wood doors are obvious.

"Experience has shown that wood warps, cracks and splits," Martin said.

"Wood has a short warranty and does not last long.

Steel also does not last as long as aluminum.

Hardware usually wears out faster on heavier doors".

The new aluminum door is also environmentally friendly, because it offers the charm and appeal of a carriage house look, without cutting down any trees.
http://www.buildingtalk.com/news/amw/amw100.html

Aluminum recycling furnace dust collection system

An aluminum can recycling plant turned to Ceco Environmental for a new furnace dust collector system using Kirk and Blum ducts, producing a 5-10% productivity improvement and cleaner plant air

Dust collection from melt and holding furnaces had been an issue for a major beverage can recycling plant.

But the air inside the facility is now crystal clear after the installation of a Ceco-aire Fabric Dust Collector System from Ceco Environmental, a leader in large-scale dust and mist collection systems.

The 176,000 ACFM system with four-module baghouse was designed, fabricated and installed as a turnkey project by the Kirk and Blum and Ceco Filters units of Ceco Environmental, in only four months.

The new system comfortably meets the required performance standard, 4 milligrams per cubic meter of plant air.

The mid south recycling facility is the world's largest dedicated used beverage can (UBC) recycling operation.

The plant will melt 14 billion UBCs, or close to 200,000 tons this year, representing almost 25 percent of the total UBCs recycled annually in the USA.

The UBCs form the melt stock for over 250,000 tons of aluminum ingots the plant will cast this year, most of it shipped to a nearby mill co-owned by the customer, to be rolled again into canstock for beer and soft drinks.

The 500,000 sq ft facility was built in 1989 with a capacity of 120,000 tons of ingot, and expansions, the most recent in 2001, have more than doubled that output.

Despite the expansions, however, the original dust collection system with two baghouses, installed when the plant opened, had not been upgraded, according to their engineering and maintenance manager: "Our existing collection system was overmatched for dust collection at the main doors and charge wells on our four melt furnaces and two holding furnaces," he explained.

Dust originates after the UBCs are shredded and processed to remove paint and lacquer.

The shredded metal, heated to well above 200F.

from the processing, is then charged into the 100-ton capacity melt furnaces, but some remaining paint and lacquer generates ash, oxide and particulates.

"That's where our dust problem originated", he confirmed.

In addition, air pollution codes required no control measures for the furnace stacks, though some opacity at the stacks was visible.

"We felt the opacity was unacceptable from an environmental standpoint, so we decided to take in stack emissions while we were upgrading the furnace collection system".

Their requirements for the system, developed by an engineering consulting firm, included extracting a volume of 156,000 ACFM at 360F, the installation of four furnace hoods, and connecting the stack emissions into the system.

And all to be done on an accelerated construction schedule.

TIGHT TIMESCALE.

The biggest challenge facing Kirk and Blum was a very tight four-month timeframe for design, fabrication and installation, said Fred Pergram, sales engineer at the Kirk and Blum Lexington plant: "Annual furnace maintenance was scheduled for the two weeks before Christmas, so that was the only window we had to get the system tied-in, because for the rest of the year the plant runs 24/7.

We had to have the baghouse in place and ready to connect during that two week span.

Coordinating the installation also was a delicate issue, because three other contractors were working in the plant with cranes and lifts at the same time we were," Pergram explained.

Ceco Filters and Kirk and Blum were chosen for the project, the engineering and maintenance manager said, because they were the only ones that could complete the system in the short timeframe.

"When we put this out for bid with four companies, it was a case of 'can anybody meet this schedule?' The other bidders told us they couldn't have a system installed before February.

Kirk and Blum showed a lot of flexibility getting this project done".

The four module baghouse with a 36' x 100' footprint, the largest ever fabricated at the Kirk and Blum Lexington plant, is designed with more than 2,500 Arimid fiber filter bags and is insulated with 3'' of mineral wool to prevent condensation on the inside walls.

In the design phase, Ceco Filters suggested that the system volume could be raised to 176,000 ACFM, and run cooler at 260F, with the addition of a dilution air damper, allowing less expensive polyester filter bags to be used.

"The customer said to raise it to 176,000 ACFM but keep the 360F as specified, so instead we turned to Arimid fiber filter bags, which worked out well," said Dale Arvin, Ceco Filters manager specialising in dry fabric filters: "The system is running cool.

The dilution damper is closed so it's running at around 150F to 160F right now".

Arvin explained that the airstream, dust-laden from the furnaces, enters the baghouse modules through a baffled inlet.

The baffle causes heavier particles to fall into the hopper while the lighter particles are evenly distributed through the collector.

As the air passes through the filter bags, the dust is collected on the outside while the clean air travels up through the inside of the bags to the clean air plenum before exiting the collector.

When the filter bags are pulsed with compressed air, the dust falls into a screw conveyor, is carried to rotary discharge valves and falls into collection bags.

The dust generated by two melt furnaces and both holding furnaces is collected in the new baghouse while the other two melt furnaces are each collected in one of the older baghouses.

"The amount of dust being collected from the furnaces is much higher than the customer had anticipated," Arvin continued: "The bags under the dust collector are filling up in only a couple of days".

That's fine with the engineering and maintenance manager, who said, "One of the best sights I see at this plant are those full collection bags going to the dumpster twice a week".

Filter replacement will not be required for three years and the change-over will require about two days for all four modules, Arvin said.

The individual modules can be isolated for filter replacement so the entire system need not be shut down.

The system uses 120 linear feet of 3/16'' mild steel ductwork, fabricated at Kirk and Blum in Lexington, which is comprised of 84'' diameter round duct from all collection points to the baghouse and 52.75'' x 80.625'' square duct from baghouse to the stack.

All the preparatory work for the baghouse, including excavation, concrete, electrical systems, piping, air compression systems and insulation, was carried out by Kirk and Blum as part of the total turnkey package, Pergram said.

The two furnace hoods in use since the plant opened were replaced by four new hoods, designed jointly by the customer and Kirk and Blum, and installed by the customer's personnel.

Before the upgrade, only one of the hoods could be used at a time, which meant only one furnace at a time could be cleaned and skimmed.

"The new installation allows them to do both simultaneously, basically doubling the volume of the hoods, and has resulted in a five to 10 percent productivity improvement," Pergram noted.

Though Kirk and Blum did not install the original dust collector system in this plant, the company has enjoyed a long relationship with the facility, performing repair and maintenance projects since the facility was built.

"This is an old and valued customer," Pergram said, "and we were glad we had the opportunity to carry out a project of this size for them, to show them how quickly we can get the job done".

The customer's reaction to the system? "We're very pleased with it.

http://www.processingtalk.com/news/kir/kir101.html

Martin introduce carriage house doors in aluminum

Martin carriage house doors in aluminum offer almost all of the features of wood, without any of the heavy maintenance or the safety liabilities.

The aluminum doors feature Martin's patented FingerShield joint design as well as over 30 safety and quality items that are standard with each Martin Door.

"This door is the best in its class.

In fact, the Carriage House Collection Aluminum Doors are in a class all their own," David Martin, chairman of MDM, said of the door.

The doors will come in over 70 powder coat colors and include 1/4" thick antique hinges and handles in black or silver.

The doors are only available with a powder coat finish.

The door is almost maintenance free, according to Martin, because of the aluminum and powder coating.

The door comes with a lifetime warranty with few limitations.

Even the door's hardware lasts long on the super strong door because of its lightweight aluminum, according to Martin.

The door features a true 3-D design, he added.

The benefits of the new carriage house look to traditional wood doors are obvious.

"Experience has shown that wood warps, cracks and splits," Martin said.

"Wood has a short warranty and does not last long.

Steel also does not last as long as aluminum.

Hardware usually wears out faster on heavier doors".

The new aluminum door is also environmentally friendly, because it offers the charm and appeal of a carriage house look, without cutting down any trees.

See the website for more details.
http://www.buildingtalk.com/news/amw/amw100.html

Asia Aluminum Bondholders to Reject Buyback Offer, Analyst Says

Investors in Asia Aluminum Holdings Ltd.’s 8 percent bonds agreed to reject the company’s offer to buy back the notes at about a quarter of face value, said an analyst who joined a conference call on the matter.

“All of the participants agreed not to tender” their holdings at the offer price, Bondcritic.com analyst Warut Promboon said in a note to clients today, without naming investors who were on the call. While a “successful tender will shut the door for the Chinese high-yield market, a fight by investors will warn other issuers not to follow suit,” he said.

Aberdeen Asset Management Plc joined emerging market trade association EMTA to host the call yesterday, according to Esther Chan, a London-based emerging market manager with Aberdeen. The goal was a united response to Hong Kong-based Asia Aluminum’s “bondholder unfriendly” offer that would keep Asia’s high- yield bond market “viable,” she said in an interview.

Officials at Asia Aluminum didn’t immediately return calls seeking comment today.

Standard & Poor’s cut Asia Aluminum’s credit rating by five grades to CC on Feb. 16 after the region’s biggest maker of extruded aluminum said bondholders have until May 18 to accept its offer of 27.5 cents on the dollar for the $450 million in 8 percent notes due 2011. The buyback is part of a restructure that’s “crucial” to keep the company operating, it said.

Chinese prices for aluminum slumped 41 percent in the past year as the global recession cut demand for the metal from builders and carmakers.

“I believe a failure to tender at 27.5 cents will bring in a default which, in my view, could draw recovery of not more than 20 cents,” Promboon said today. Since the notes are being quoted by traders at about 15 cents, “a 7.5 price point loss could be worth the fight for the restructuring of Asia Aluminum or a better concession price.”
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a4gfB7LOlurs&refer=home

Reports: China names aluminum boss to Cabinet

The general manager of China's biggest aluminum producer has been named to a Cabinet post, news reports said Wednesday, a week after his company helped secure access to foreign resources with a $19.5 billion investment in miner Rio Tinto Group.

The reported appointment of Xiao Yaqing of Aluminum Corp. of China as the Cabinet deputy secretary-general reflects the close ties between the communist government and the country's major companies. It comes amid a wave of foreign acquisitions by China's state-owned metals suppliers.

Xiao's appointment was reported by the Shanghai Securities News, which is published by the state Xinhua News Agency, and other newspapers. The Cabinet press office did not immediately respond to requests by phone and fax to confirm the report.

The reports gave no explanation of why Xiao, 49, who has no known government experience, was picked for such a prominent post. Bosses of Chinese banks, oil producers and other state-owned companies routinely alternate between corporate and government jobs.

Aluminum Corp. of China, also known as Chinalco, and other metals producers surged to prominence as China's demand for raw materials boosted imports and set off a scramble to secure foreign supplies. Flush with cash from the commodities boom, they have continued to pursue acquisitions amid the global economic turmoil.

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2009/02/18/business/AS-China-Chinalco-Cabinet.php

Copper, Aluminum, Nickel Fall as Reduced Use Boosts Inventories

Copper, aluminum and nickel declined in London as the global economic slowdown reduced demand for industrial metals used in buildings and cars.

Copper stockpiles in warehouses monitored by the London Metal Exchange rose 1.3 percent to the highest since November 2003, aluminum inventories are at a record and nickel inventories are the highest since July 1995. Copper rose to a two-month high yesterday on speculation that government spending in the U.S. and China would revive demand.

“The market is recognizing realities rather than speculating on spending from stimulative packages and perceived Chinese buying,” said Herwig Schmidt, a trader at Triland Metals Ltd. in London.

Copper for delivery in three months fell $48, or 1.3 percent, to $3,532 a metric ton as of 9:39 a.m. on the LME, eroding this year’s gain to 15 percent. Nickel dropped $111, or 1 percent, to $11,389 a ton and aluminum declined $17.75, or 1.2 percent, to $1,427.25 a ton. Nickel is used to make stainless steel and aluminum and copper are used in cars and homes.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange Comex division, copper futures for March delivery declined 2.05 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $1.5925 a pound. Futures are up 13 percent this year.

Hulamin Ltd., Africa’s largest aluminum processor, said today that customers in the auto, transportation and construction industries are paring inventories. LME stockpiles rose 0.5 percent to 2.9 million tons, the most since the aluminum contract started in 1978.

Still, investors are “cautiously” returning to the industrial metals markets in anticipation of supply shortages as companies cut output, Barclays Capital analyst Kevin Norrish said yesterday.

“The supply side has adjusted much more quickly than in the past,” he said. “We’re still in a commodity bull market.”

Nickel inventories jumped 582 tons to 87,288 tons and copper stockpiles climbed 6,650 tons to 514,425 tons.

The dollar rose on optimism U.S. President Barack Obama’s stimulus and bank-rescue packages will spur growth in the world’s largest economy. Obama yesterday said the U.S. economy faces a “full-blown crisis.”

Lead declined $25 to $1,174 a ton and tin gained $20 to $11,250 a ton. Zinc fell $13 to $1,182 a ton.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=aaGDiS5D1pFQ&refer=latin_america