Key Information Sources for Your 2022 Management Decisions

In today’s business world, three words are the key to your company and management team making accurate decisions while minimizing uncertainty and risk. Those three words are data, data, and data. Having real-time information flowing to your teams is the key to taking advantage of the opportunities in front of every heat treating company. 

One of the Metal Treating Institute’s highest priorities is to invest its resources into providing information and data that will drive your team’s success in making decisions and executing your business plan. The following are key connection points and information flow that you will want to make sure you tap into for 2022.

MTI Monthly Sales Trend Analysis Reports

MTI collects the monthly sales number from over 50% of its commercial heat treating plants. In the world of benchmarking, that is truly remarkable. Most associations are lucky if they can get 20% of their members to participate. Having that kind of participation allows MTI to provide highly accurate trends and forecasting analysis on sales. MTI’s online sales reporting system provides a monthly report, showing the last 12-month trends for the 9-reporting districts and nationally. If you are a participant in the program, you receive analysis specific to your company, showing your 12-month trend, as well as your sales ranking in your district/nationally and your market share.  These reports play an important role in member teams meetings in production and sales. CLICK HERE for more information.

MTI Quarterly Sales Forecast Reports & Webinars

MTI is partnered with ITR Economics, one of the leading forecasting companies in manufacturing. ITR uses MTI’s historical sales data with their patented forecast modeling programs to provide MTI with a 1, 2, and 3 year sales forecast. Included in the quarterly forecasting report is also forecasts for two leading indicators, which heat treat sales follow like clockwork, and 8-industry sectors that drive heat treat sales. In this report, you can visually see which one of the four cycles each industry is in:  Recovery, Accelerated Growth, Decline, or Recession. Once a report is released in February, May, August, and November, ITR presents a 45-minute webinar outlining the numbers behind the data and answers any member questions. Being able to see the three year outlook for heat treat sales, leading indicators, and 8-industry sectors gives you and your team a high-level of confidence when making key decisions on expansion, new equipment purchases, and future strategy. CLICK HERE for more information.

MTI Monthly LIVE Webcasts

Every month, MTI hosts a LIVE webcast where CEO Tom Morrison interviews experts on a variety of topics on key issues in heat treating. With over 70% of members stating technical standards play a huge role in the day-to-day operation of their business, MTI dedicates at least three of the webcasts to activity from meetings with Nadcap, AMEC, ASTM, and CQI-9 specs. Throughout the year, MTI mixes in key topics like energy, cybersecurity, CMMC compliance, and other important topics. The monthly webcasts are recorded and posted in MTI’s online open forum for anyone who misses them.  As a part of your membership, all your team members in our database receive an invite to view webcasts. CLICK HERE to view our YouTube channel of past shows.

Weekly Business Check Ins

Each week, MTI sends a key business question for the top two key executives in member companies to answer. The questions are designed to be topics many members have stated, “I would love to know how other members are thinking or doing with this issue.”  Topics include how people are handling accounts receivable, when to put someone on COD, how to handle paying employees when testing positive for COVID, and mask/vaccine requirements. Many members have stated they love seeing the results on how members reply and best practices/tips. To view the results on any given week, you must answer that week’s question. Make sure you look for the MTI Weekly Check-In and participate.

MTI Operational Cost Report

Knowing how your costs are trending compared to the industry is so important as supply chain and labor issues challenge productivity. MTI’s Ops Cost reporting allows you to see how your company compares twice a year. Every March and August MTI opens up the online ops cost reporting system for members to enter in their cost figures. The system is password protected so you only see your number and trends. You are able to see how you rank among companies similar to you in size, companies with profit vs loss, top 50% in sales, bottom 50% in sales, and all companies. This is a great report to go over with your management team to help them see where areas of improvement are.  CLICK HERE for more information.

Make sure to engage each of these reports and online resources to minimize risk and uncertainty and give your team confidence in your daily management decisions.  If you find you are not engaged and would like to be, or would like to schedule a 20 minute virtual call with your team to go over these resources to learn how to use them more effectively, contact the MTI office at info@heattreat.net.