tempering furnaces, is known to be materially larger in 1969 than in 1964. Theoretical plant capacity, U.S. production, and apparent U.S. consumption of the types of glass subject to this investigation in 1964 and 1968 are shown in the following tabulation. 196 Capacity shown is for facilities existing on June 30, 1969. 2/ Not available. 3/ Furnaces primarily producing rolled glass. glass. Includes rolled glass, rough plate glass blanks, and polished wire Theoretical annual capacity is not an exact measure of the quantity of flat glass the U.S. industry could actually produce in a year. U.S. output cannot attain theoretical capacity because of regularly occurring furnace shut-downs for rebuilding, repairs, or modification, as well as limitations resulting from the deterioration of furnaces as they become older. Theoretical annual capacity of U.S. plants to produce sheet glass increased from 1.4 million short tons in 1964 to 1.5 million short tons in 1969. The establishment of a new plant in California accounted for the major share of the increase in capacity; however, modifications to existing facilities to improve product quality and productivity also resulted in an increase in capacity. Regularly occurring furnace shut downs for rebuilding, repairs, and mofifications were equivalent to 5 percent of plant capacity in 1964 and 10 percent in 1968. Thirty sheet glass furnaces were available for production on June 30, 1969; 26 were being used to produce glass for sale and one was operated for research purposes. The three remaining furnaces, although shut down, were available for production should circumstances Between 1964 and 1968, 4 sheet glass furnaces were dis1/ warrant. mantled. The annual U.S. capacity to produce plate and float glass has undergone marked changes since 1964. Plate glass capacity declined. from 2.0 million tons a year in 1964 to 1.1 million tons in 1969. This One of these furnaces was converted to the production of float decline was accompanied by an increase in float glass capacity from 0.1 million tons in 1964 to 1.3 million tons in 1969. In the aggregate, annual U.S. capacity to produce both plate and float glass increased from 2.1 million tons in 1964 to 2.4 million tons a year in 1969. Regularly occurring furnace shut downs for rebuilding, repair, or modification were equivalent to 13 percent of annual capacity in 1964 and 9 percent in 1968. Nearly all of these shut downs occurred in furnaces producing plate glass. Plate glass furnaces no longer needed have generally been converted to float glass furnaces or dismantled, rather than placed in standby. In 1969 there were no idle plate glass or float glass furnaces. One plate glass furnace, however, has been operating on an intermittent basis in recent years. Annual U.S. plant capacity to produce rolled glass cannot be accurately determined because most furnaces producing plate glass can also produce rolled glass. The annual theoretical capacity of those plants which principally produce rolled glass, however, increased from 269,000 tons a year in 1964 to 280,000 tons a year in 1969, principally because a new rolled glass plant began production during this period. Ten furnaces were available for production in 1969; 7 were in production. Data on shut downs for repairs or modifications are not The capacity of a tempering furnace is extremely difficult to calculate because of the varied shapes and sizes of glass that are tempered in an individual furnace. One indication of the industry's ability to produce tempered glass is the number of furnaces available to produce such glass. The number of tempering furnaces in operation in 1969 was 143, 28 more than in 1964. Capital Investments U.S. glass producers have expended $230 million since the end of 1963 on capital investments in flat glass and tempered glass facilities. Expenditures for new production facilities (largely float glass plants) accounted for 63 percent of the total; the remainder was spent to improve existing production facilities. Of the total expenditures, 64 percent was devoted to float glass facilities, 16 percent to tempered glass facilities, 14 percent to sheet glass facilities, 5 percent to plate glass facilities, and 1 percent to rolled glass facilities. The aggregate value of new investment by the U.S. producers of flat glass and tempered glass in the period January 1964 through June 1969 is shown in the following tabulation: New facilities-----: 19,272 : 929: 116,296 : : : 200 : 7,305: 144,002 2,856: 35,713 : 230,325 The building of float glass production facilities built during this period incorporated the most important technological change in the U.S. flat glass industry in recent years. During 1964-68, $116 million was expended to build new float glass lines and $31 million to modify these facilities. Major sums were also expended to build a sheet glass plant, a rolled glass plant, and 12 tempered glass plants. Distribution channels The marketing of flat and tempered glass in the United States, like that of many products, is characterized by the use of multiple distribution channels. The main channels through which flat glass, both domestic and imported, is distributed are as follows--listed in the approximate order of their importance: 1. Directly from domestic or foreign producers to 2. Through independent glass distributors who, in |