Wire Filaments: Brush Manufacturer Market Update Part I

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PART I: Wire Brush Manufacturers

By Bob Lawrence

Ask anyone outside the brush industry what wire brushes are used for and most will cite menial tasks such as grill cleaning, having no realization that they’re essential in most major industries producing products and services ubiquitous in their lives, from aerospace and automotive to agriculture and telecommunications. As such, it’s a high-growth segment of the brush industry, according to a July 2023 Business Research Insights analysis of the global wire brush market. The findings: it’s expected to grow from over $553 million (USD) now to $784 million at a compound annual growth rate of six percent by 2028.

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2023 Brushware September-October FEIBP Preview

Brushware’s 2023 September-October issue previews the 63rd FEIBP Congress with a complete travel guide for Belfast along with event information and schedule. Going deeper into the edition, Bob Lawrence offers a deep dive Q&A on the wire filaments market with key wire brush manufacturers and suppliers. In addition, Lisa Anderson offers a column on how manufacturers can thrive during this time of high risk in the supply chain. Also on offer is our Economic Dashboard with PMI information, Industry News and the 2023 first-half update on U.S. Import and Export data.

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Gordon Brush Mfg. Co. Acquires Justman Brush Company

Gordon Brush Mfg. Co., Inc. has acquired Justman Brush Company located in Omaha, Nebraska. The Company’s manufacturing and operations will remain in its 45,000 sq. ft. building in Omaha while administrative procedures will be moved to Gordon Brush’s 183,000 sq. ft., City of Industry, California facility.

Since 1929, Justman Brush has specialized in manufacturing a vast array of styles and types of stock and custom brushes for the scientific, food service and electronics industries. John Matthews, Justman Brush’s CEO, says, “It’s time for us to step aside so that the company can continue to grow. We felt that Gordon Brush® was the best fit to take Justman Brush to the next level, to continue our family tradition of individualized customer service, and to best manufacture our line of American-made line of brushes for the scientific, food service and electronics industries.”

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Brushware’s Most Read Web Articles for 2022

Faux Kolinsky® by Dynasty® from FM Brush was one of the many watercolor brush lines presented in the Best Watercolor Brushes of 2022 article

In a year full of ups and downs for the brush industry, it was a little surprising to see that the “Best Watercolor Brushes for 2022” post was the most popular on our website, but that just goes to show how important brush products are to consumers worldwide. While the controversy surrounding Interbrush certainly brought more readers to the site, it’s great to see that many positive articles were also highly ranked by our readers. Thank you to all of our loyal readers for your continued support in 2022! We are happy to report that we continue to see remarkable growth in readership for our website, e-newsletter and digital magazine. That is all made possible by the dedication and loyalty from the overall brush industry community. To celebrate the continued momentum, please enjoy our top-performing news articles from www.brushwaremag.com for 2022.

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Brushware Inflation Series: Brush Industry Impact Part I

istockphoto/Stadtratte

Manufacturer Perspective: Industry Leaders On The Impact of Inflation and Supply Chain Challenges

By Bob Lawrence

With the days dwindling down toward the new year amid the highest worldwide inflation rates in decades, and with the likes of Steve Forbes and Elon Musk predicting a recession, Brushware sought input from European and North American manufacturers, suppliers and machinery companies to learn how they are dealing with inflation, its impact, root causes and opinions on solutions to curtail it.

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Best Watercolor Brushes 2022

Watercolor painting has long been considered one of the top mediums for creative art. The semi-transparent look of watercolor allows the paper to give a painting a natural luminosity. As a fast-drying medium, the artist must work quickly as they blend colors while managing the water balance. That sense of urgency can create spontaneous and beautiful results. 

However, that balance and the overall delicacy of the medium requires the artist to wield a top-quality brush. For watercolor brushes, the most important characteristic is how well it holds water. Traditionally, natural sable hair brushes have been considered the top choice, but synthetic brushes are making inroads. The key strength that artists cite for sable is the water holding strength, but synthetics offer a vegan-friendly alternative at a more affordable price.

Choosing the right brush for watercolor can be challenging, but we asked the top Brushware artist brush manufacturers to present their best options. Here is your list of the best watercolor brushes for 2022.

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Inflation and Supply Chain Impact on Gordon Brush

 

Ken Rakusin, President and CEO, Gordon Brush Mfg. Co., Inc. was interviewed by reporter Renee Ing from Spectrum News 1 on how inflation and supply chain issues are affecting brush manufacturers.

“Everything is backlogged because we are having trouble getting the material needed to make our brushes and something that used to cost $5.00, is now $15.00,” says Rakusin, “The backlog has slowed my entire business down. We used to be able to quote and deliver in a one to two-week time period, now, we can’t do that anymore, we don’t know whether it’s going to be four weeks or six weeks.”

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Gordon Brush Letter to Zahoransky

Following the December announcement that Zahoransky would no longer exhibit at Interbrush, Ken Rakusin, president and CEO of Gordon Brush, shared a letter he sent to Ulrich Zahoransky and Robert Dous of Zahoransky on January 19, 2022. At last week’s ABMA Convention, Rakusin granted permission for Brushware to publish the full letter:

 

Dear Uli and Robert,

I am writing to you regarding your announcement last month about Zahoransky bidding farewell to Interbrush and no longer exhibiting. I refrained from writing to you until this time as I was quite upset and wanted to make sure that I wasn’t letting emotion get the best of me.

I find it quite offensive that Zahoransky has chosen to basically leave the brush industry behind and ignore the significant benefits gained by brush manufacturers and suppliers worldwide at Interbrush. I’ll use my personal experience over my 32 years in the business as an example.

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