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COMPOSITES WATCH Composites WATCH Whether it's the marine market, the wind energy industry, urban marine infrastructure or the composites supply chain, the key word is change. MARINE market's glass half full, half empty Source | Delta No end-market served by the composites industry was harder hit by the recession than marine. Since 2008, demand for boats of all types has dropped dramatically. U.S.-based BoatingIndustry.com hosted a webinar in August in which three speakers agreed that the marine segment could take a while to return to the peaks seen in 2005-2006. Jim Petru, director of industry statistics and research at the National Marine Manufacturers Assn. (NMMA, Chicago, Ill.); Peter Houseworth, director of client services at Info-Link (Miami, Fla.); and Jon Burnham, editorial director at Dominion Marine Media (Norfolk, Va.) noted a number of positives: Boating participation has been up 32 percent in the past fve years, 81 percent of boat owners have annual incomes of less than $100,000, powerboat sales were up 10 percent and sailboat sales were up 29 percent in 2012. Further, the total U.S. recreational marine craf sales were $35.6 billion in 2012, up from $32.4 billion in 2011, but still shy of the 2006 peak of $39.5 billion. Tat said, they spied troubling trends as well: Each year, the average age of boat owners increases by six months. Tradtional powerboat sales are in decline, with 157,000 units sold in 2012, compared to more than 500,000 units sold in 1988. Te average powerboat age today is 21 years, compared to 15 years in 1997, and 74 percent of sailboats are more than 20 years old. Te total number of marine vessels registered in the U.S. hasn't changed in 15 years, despite a 25 percent population increase, and 7 out of 10 frst-time boat buyers sell their boat and leave the sport. Lastly, aging baby boomers, a long-time major consumer of boats, are less active in the sport. Analysts suggest that the aging feet might signal that consumers are on the verge of upgrading to new boats, propelling the market into high-growth. Petru noted during the webinar that overall boat sales correlate to consumer confdence. Because that confdence is coming back slowly and the market is awash with quality used boats for sale, the marine industry's growth will likely continue to be slow. Te Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering (SAMPE, Covina, Calif.) and the American Composites Manufacturers Assn. (ACMA, Arlington, Va.) announced on July 31 that their new jointly owned and operated trade show and conference will be called CAMX — the Composites and Advanced Materials Expo. SAMPE and ACMA, which traditionally have operated their own trade shows, announced late in 2012 that they would consolidate the former SAMPE show and ACMA's COMPOSITES show into a single fall event, beginning in 2014. SAMPE brings with it composites professionals who primarily serve the aerospace market and other advanced materials applications. ACMA has served a broad range of applications, including those in the marine, wind energy, automotive, infrastructure and industrial markets. Going forward, CAMX is expected to be North America's composites industry go-to event for every served market segment. Te newly partnered organizations say the trusted and valued aspects of both organizations' annual events will continue at CAMX in an expert-rich combined technical conference program, and a far more expansive show foor. Te frst CAMX conference program will take place Oct. 13-16, 2014, and the CAMX exhibit hall will be open Oct. 14-16, at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla. CAMX 2014 is expected to attract more than 8,500 attendees and more than 500 exhibitors. For more information, visit the CAMX Web site at www.thecamx.org. CT OCTOBER 2013 SAMPE/ACMA joint trade show christened CAMX 9