CompositesWorld
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TRENDS SEPTEMBER 2017 26 CompositesWorld World Class 5-Axis Composites Machining Centers www.quintax.com Engineering, Performance & Support all from the U.S.A. • sales@quintax.com • ph: 330.920.9200, ext 137 No composites end-market was hit harder by the Great Recession than recreational marine, but memories of those dark days are rapidly fading. Indeed, in the US, the National Marine Manufacturers Assn. (NMMA, Chicago, IL, US) reports that 2016 was the best in 10 years for sales of new personal watercraft. NMMA's 2016 Recreational Boating Statistical Abstract reports that US sales of all boats, marine products and services totaled US$36 billion, which was a 3.2% increase over 2015. Overall sales of new powerboats in 2016 increased 6%, for a total of 247,800 boats sold. Similar growth is expected this year and in 2018. Outboard boat sales, which represent 85% of the new powerboat market, were up 6.1% in 2016 to 160,900 units. This is a far cry from the nadir of the US recreational marine market, in 2009, when only 153,500 new powerboats were sold — less than new outboard boat sales alone in 2016. Indeed, 2016 sales figures are approaching those not seen since the pre-recession period's last, and in many boating segments, peak, good year, 2007, when 267,300 new powerboats were sold. "Economic factors, including an improving housing market, higher employment, strong consumer confi- dence, and growing disposable income, are creating a golden age for the country's recreational boating indus- try," says Thom Dammrich, president of NMMA. "Summer is a busy selling season for our industry, and we expect steady growth to continue across most boat categories through 2017 — and into 2018 — to keep up with the accel- eration in demand for new boats." MARINE Recreational marine sales hit 10-year high Source | Scott Bader