SIDNEY — Quality Steel Fabrication has demonstrated continued strength in 2022, building on the momentum it gained emerging from the pandemic, and surpassing expectations from the prior two years reports retired owner Ted Daniel.

Daniel’s report continues:

While overall demand and production capacity have hit recent highs, there are indications that the near-term outlook for 2023 may not be as bright. The industry is currently experiencing concerns related to runaway inflation and a drastic tight qualified labor market and economic uncertainty in the supply chain including sourcing bottlenecks, cost pressures and energy concerns. QSF has been very fortunate to have a customer base that is diversified in many market segments. It seems when one market segment is weak another is ready to take its place. Our biggest limitation for business growth is finding qualified employees.

Small businesses play a significant role in the economy given they account for approximately 66% of all new jobs and roughly 44% of total US economic activity according to the US Small Business Administration. Though manufacturing only contributes to around 20% of GDP in today’s economy, the trends in small businesses are a big part of the growth cycle. The leading indicators of the business cycle continue to unanimously suggest the cyclical slowdown will accelerate throughout 2023. China’s ability to reopen its economy will determine the severity of a 2023 slowdown or recession of our economy. The Federal Reserve’s anti-inflationary policies curbing demand and tightening financial conditions enough is just starting to bring prices down much closer to the Fed’s 2% inflation target over the course of 2023. On a coincident basis, driven by a historically tight labor market and robust industrial production growth, the US economy remains deceptively strong despite negative real incomes and tight financial conditions.

QSF is a diverse state-of-the-art custom metal fabrication shop that offers a wide range of custom machining, welding and fabrication services. Our well-established business has been providing sheet metal fabrication services to customers for over 20 years. The company boasts a diverse customer base, with no customer constituting more than 8% of sales in any given year. The Company operates meticulously to ensure that projects are completed to customers’ specifications and has a reputation for being reliable and dependable. They have in-house capabilities to create any metal parts requiring laser cutting, bending, machining, or fabricating. So whether the customer needs one piece or 1,000 pieces, they can be sure that their top-of-line equipment and experienced 30 operators will produce a part that is quality cut, competitively priced, and delivered on time. It is their mission to use our unique skills and knowledge to providing the highest quality product, best customer service, and the most competitive pricing in the industry while maintaining a long lasting relationship with customers and employees. QSF supplies fabrication needs in the tri-state area as a premier metal fabrication company, providing services to OEM equipment manufacturers and industry in the RV, hydroforming, food, automotive and printing industries.

QSF is a technological leader in the fabrication industry, working with some of the tightest tolerance manufacturers in the industry to fabricate and finish complex parts that meet the most exacting standards. Work is backed by quality checks throughout the manufacturing process combining design experience with in-house metal fabrication capability providing clients with a valuable resource. They are capable of utilizing the most current versions of either Solid Works or AutoCAD in the design process. Utilizing 3D modeling, flat pattern development and nesting software enables them to construct complex sheet metal parts efficiently. Each customer has a single point of contact customer service representative dedicated to answering technical as well as logistical needs.