SIC 3421 Cutlery

Contenidos

• NAICS CODE(S).
• INDUSTRY SNAPSHOT.
• BACKGROUND AND DEVELOPMENT.
• CURRENT CONDITIONS.
• INDUSTRY LEADERS.
• WORKFORCE.
• AMERICA AND THE WORLD.
• RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY.
• FURTHER READING.

SIC 3421

This category includes establishments primarily engaged in the manufacture of items such as pocket knives, safety razors, razor blades, straight razors, table cutlery, scissors, shears, manicure tools, kitchen and butcher knives, and artisan's knives. Establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing precious metal cutlery and table cutlery with handles of metal are classified in SIC 3914: Silverware, Plated Ware, and Stainless Steel Ware; those manufacturing electric razors, knives, or scissors are classified in SIC 3634: Electric Housewares and Fans; those manufacturing hair clippers for human use are classified in SIC 3999: Manufacturing Industries, Not Elsewhere Classified; those manufacturing them for animal use in SIC 3523: Farm Machinery and Equipment; and those manufacturing power hedge shears and trimmers are classified in SIC 3524: Lawn and Garden Tractors and Home Lawn and Garden Equipment.

NAICS CODE(S)

332211

Cutlery and Flatware (except Precious) Manufacturing

INDUSTRY SNAPSHOT

Rated in 1872 by J.B. Hyde as one of America's "great industries," cutlery manufacturing has witnessed significant change. Instead of small craft shops producing innovative but simple utensils, modern cutlery firms are more likely to be mass producers of one or two extremely simple products that can be sold anywhere in the world. However, sales of the various cutlery products showed steady growth throughout the century, increasing from $37,002 in 1921 to $3.2 billion in 2003.

The industry can be divided into two main components: kitchen and table cutlery, and nonelectric razors and razor blades. Shears and scissors comprise a third—but proportionately tiny—segment of the industry. Most cutlery products are sold by retail chain stores, warehouse clubs, specialty stores, or catalogue operations. Manufacturers supported retail sales with national advertising campaigns, promotional offers, and sales training programs.

BACKGROUND AND DEVELOPMENT

The production of quality cutting tools required skilled artisans, most of whom worked in the communities of Sheffield, England, and Solingen, Germany. Because the cost to transport the finished product was small, early American efforts could not compete with the quality or price of imported products. The American industry was helped by a 20 percent ad valorem tax imposed in 1792 and an innovative machine-forged knife introduced in 1844. The U.S. industry continued to push for even higher tariffs in the 1890s with some success, but its greatest victory came during World War I.

Between 1914 and 1919, all German products disappeared from the Americas along with most British manufactures. Tariff increases in 1922 solidified the industry gain, ensuring both prosperity for the industry and high consumer prices, although the 1930s saw a shift in demand to lower-priced products.

One of the biggest problems for the industry was the quality of steel available. Sheffield set the standard with its invention of crucible steel in 1740. That process took imported Swedish "blister" steel, known for its consistent quality, and melted it in clay crucibles along with precise amounts of manganese, carbon, and other materials. The result was steel that was well suited for knives and other blades. American firms imported this steel, thereby increasing production costs, until late in the nineteenth century. At the time, American crucible steel proved unreliable and experiments with cold and hot rolled carbon steel produced an inferior product. In 1910 stainless steel in the form of an alloy of cobalt, chromium, and steel made its debut as the "rustless steel," but the lack of accurate measuring instruments, like pyrometers and thermometers, along with the scarcity of skilled annealers to judge the preparation of the metal, often resulted in brittle knives or soft edges.

However, technology and demand continued to evolve, and by 1930 a consistent material became...