In an article posted on June 3, “An Upside to the Downturn,” I mentioned a piece by Jeff Klingberg, President/CEO, Mountain Stream Group, Inc. in Product Design & Development entitled “Wake Up Fluid Power Industry Or Prepare For Extinction.” In that article Klingberg suggested electric actuators are making strong inroads into the U.S. fluid power industry largely because that industry has failed to embrace new technology. Environmental considerations (leaking and spilled hydraulic fluid) and energy conservation are the chief drivers, he said.

Klingberg emailed to thank us for the mention, and in replying I mentioned an article I wrote in PD&D for Feb 3, 2006 entitled “What Lies Ahead For Hydraulics?” At that time, I also cited Klingberg as having said the fluid power business seemed to be on a long slide, particularly at the low-power end. The article also pointed out that environmentally friendly hydraulic fluids like water and vegetable oil were little used, and cited Klingberg as saying they had received little publicity.

Well, not much seems to have changed in the past three years: fluid power is still declining. In Klingberg’s words, “The issues are exactly the same for the fluid power industry, but worse. This economic recession has really caused a lot of heartache for many manufacturers in the industry, especially at the mobile hydraulic end. There are a few that are at 1/16 of their sales from just last year. Employees who are being laid off are fed up with decisions of the corporate leaders.”

“If something radical doesn’t happen within the industry in the next 5-10 years,” he predicts, “especially from the pneumatic side of things it will be an extinct industry.”

We have three questions for readers: Is the industry really doomed? Can it be saved? And if so, how?

Email your answers/comments to pcleaveland@earthlink.net