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For 2003 I am looking for sales to increase about 7 percent for the standard backhoes and 8 percent for the compact machines. I feel that the first quarter of 2003 will continue to be slow for the industry overall, but that demand will start to flow back into the market through the second quarter and into the third quarter. There should be plenty of positive comparisons when matching sales levels later in 2003 versus those that were achieved in 2002. My three-point backhoe sank down into the soil making it difficult to hook up again. I welded four pieces of 6-inch channel iron into a rectangular support about 12 inches wide, 8 inches high. Now the backhoe''s lower center frame sits on the support, taking the weight off the stabilizer arms. I recently looked at small rebuildhydraulicpump400deere equipment and how it is becoming more important in the world of machinery. One product touched on only briefly is the mini-backhoe loader, which has become a familiar sight in many rental stores rebuildhydraulicpump400deere across the North American market. This machine has gained great respect in recent years thanks to engineering improvements and the machine''s overall versatility Jobs once relegated to standard backhoe loaders can now be handled quite well by the mini machines. This triumph notwithstanding, when teetering on a stepladder, "the [slotted] screw wobbles, the screwdriver slips, the screw rebuildhydraulicpump400deere falls to the ground rebuildhydraulicpump400deere and rolls away, the handyman curses--not for the first time--the inventor of this maddening device."The savior, in this case, was Peter L. Robertson, a young Canadian traveling salesman who invented things in his spare time. His efforts to push an improved corkscrew, novel cuff links, and a more diabolical mousetrap failed. However, the socket-head screw he patented in 1907 succeeded. It was self-centering, could be driven with one hand, and the driver stayed in the socket. Furniture makers, boat builders, and Henry Ford appreciated the economies to be realized with these screws. For utilization and geographic location, in its October Offshore Rig Locator, Offshore Data Services shows 290 jackups working, out of a total worldwide fleet of 387 rigs, for 75% utilization, down 5% from last year''s 79%. The U.S. Gulf of Mexico had 108 jackups working, rebuildhydraulicpump400deere of a total 139 available, for 78% utilization. The second most active area was the Persian Gulf, with 32 of its 46 rigs active. Asia accounted for 66 rigs--in India, 22 units were all active; SE Asia had 18 of its 26 rigs working, and the Far East area had 16 of 18 jackups contracted. West Africa had only 12 of its 26 rigs working. Other active areas were: Mediterranean/Black Sea, 12; the Caspian, 7; Mexico, 6; Venezuela, 6; the Red Sea, 7; and Brazil, 5.
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