Evening star., 1923-12-08
BY ROGER w. BABSOS,

WELLESLEY HILLS, Mass, De-
ccmber S.-The long trend in the
growth of the electrical equipment
industry is strongly upward. The in
dustry has had a remarkable increase
in every item of Importance All
companies have, of course, not done
equally, well, many Of the smaller
concerns that rushed into the bust
ness without experience or financial
backing having failed. On the other
hand, well managed businesses with
competent organizations have thrived.
Trend Strongly Upward.
The basic trend of electrical de-
velopment is more strongly upward
than the basic trend in general busi-
ness. 1t is so strong that depressionS
In general business, such as the de-
pressions in 1907, 1914 and 1921. cause
only temporary slackening in cleo
trical lines This strong growth is
exemplified by the increasing use of
electrical power. Electrical horse
power used in manufacturing in
creased from S.S35,970 horsepower in
1914 to l6.31I,277 horsepower in 1913.
and is now estimated to approximate
2n,000.00O horsepower or nearly 20
per cent Of all the power used in
manufacturing
This latter percentage compares
with 30 per cent in 1919 and slightly
under 40 per cent in 1914. The total
output of central stations which fur
nisn approximately 20 per cent of all
the electrical power used in manu-
featuring has shown Il similar
growth. The market for electrical
Industrial equipment has kept pace
with this development.
Competition IL Keen.
Notwithstanding the strong growth
I'm the. production and sale of electri-
cal equipment, apparatus and sup
plies. all concerns in the industry are
not now equally prosperous. lncreaS-
ing costs this year have apparently
tended to neutralize the advantage
of larger sales. Moreover, the COM
petition of the larger concerns is ap
parently hurting many smaller con-
Germs. 1t is true, however, that some
of the smaller concerns catering to
the automotive. industries are doing
well.
The industry has been especially
favored with a good broad demand.
Orders in connection with the manu-
facture and operation of automobiles
and also with the building boom have
been very good. Furthermore. the
growing use of electricity in the home
and in industry has foStered an at
tractive market. This tendency is
port the business during the quieter
periods that may be faced next year.
Cost of Materials.
Considering all electrical equip
ment, apparatus and supplies as
whole. statistics show that the cost
of raw materials used in their manu-
facture averages As per cent of the
manufacturers selling price: direct
labor a little over 20 per cent. In
asmuch as this industry uses approXi-
mately rs different raw materials,
the trend of costs has close rela-
tionship to the trend in raw COM
modify prices. Costs have, therefore,
avera ged higher this year than they
did in 1922, but copper and many
other raw materials have been de-
clining since last April, so that alert
executives have had opportunities to
buy at somewhat better levels than
that represented by the average.
Reports from various quarters indf-
cate that prices of electrical aD-
paratus and supplies have. on the
average, shown but little change dur
ing recent months. Inasmuch as