Ampco-Pittsburgh Corp (AP) 2026 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good day, and welcome to the Ampco-Pittsburgh first quarter 2026 earnings results conference call. (Operator Instructions) Please note this event is being recorded.

各位好，歡迎參加 Ampco-Pittsburgh 2026 年第一季財報結果電話會議。(操作員指示) 請注意，本活動將被錄音。

I would now like to turn the conference call over to Ms. Kim Knox. Ms. Knox, the floor is yours, ma'am.

現在我想將電話會議交給 Kim Knox 女士。Knox 女士，請您發言。

Thank you, Mike, and good morning to everyone joining us on today's first quarter 2026 conference call. Joining me today are Brett McBrayer, our Chief Executive Officer; and David Anderson, Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and President of Air and Liquid Systems Corporation. Also joining us on the call today is Sam Lyon, President of Union Electric Steel Corporation.

謝謝你，Mike，並向所有參加今天 2026 年第一季電話會議的各位道早安。今天與我一同出席的有：我們的執行長 Brett McBrayer；以及 David Anderson，副總裁、財務長，並兼任 Air and Liquid Systems Corporation 總裁。同時也有 Sam Lyon 參與本次電話會議，他是 Union Electric Steel Corporation 總裁。

Before we begin, I would like to remind everyone that participants on this call may make statements or comments that are forward-looking and may include financial projections or other statements of the corporation's plans, objectives, expectations or intentions. These matters involve certain risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside the corporation's control.

在開始之前，我想提醒各位，本次電話會議的與會者可能會發表或評論前瞻性陳述，並可能包含財務預測或公司計畫、目標、預期或意圖的其他陳述。這些事項涉及若干風險與不確定性，其中許多超出公司控制範圍。

The corporation's actual results may differ significantly from those projected or suggested in any forward-looking statements due to various risk factors, including those discussed in the corporation's most recently filed Form 10-K and in subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

由於各種風險因素（包括公司最近提交的 Form 10-K 以及其後向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件中所討論者），公司的實際結果可能與任何前瞻性陳述中所預測或暗示者有重大差異。

We do not undertake any obligation to update or otherwise release publicly any revision to our forward-looking statements. A replay of this call will be posted on our website later today. To access the earnings release or the webcast replay, please consult the Investors section of our website at ampcopgh.com.

我們不承擔更新或以其他方式公開發布對前瞻性陳述之任何修訂的義務。本次電話會議的重播將於今日稍晚發布於我們的網站。如需取得財報新聞稿或網路直播重播，請至 ampcopgh.com 我們網站的投資人（Investors）專區查詢。

With that, I'd like to turn the call over to Brett McBrayer, Ampco-Pittsburgh's CEO. Brett?

接下來，我想把電話會議交給 Ampco-Pittsburgh 執行長 Brett McBrayer。Brett？

Thank you, Kim. Good morning, and thank you for joining our call. As reported in our press release, consolidated adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter was $8 million, down from $8.8 million the prior year. Our results reflect ramp-up costs in Sweden as well as a weaker mix in our Forged and Cast Engineered Products segment.

謝謝你，Kim。各位早安，感謝各位參加我們的電話會議。如同我們新聞稿所述，第一季合併調整後 EBITDA 為 800 萬美元，低於去年同期的 880 萬美元。我們的結果反映了瑞典的產能爬坡成本，以及我們鍛造與鑄造工程產品（Forged and Cast Engineered Products）事業部較弱的產品組合。

We see ongoing progress in this segment following the 2025 slowdown with trends stabilizing as the business moves through a normalization in volumes and mix. With strong demand continuing in our Air and Liquid Processing segment, ALP achieved record adjusted EBITDA and record customer orders for the first quarter of 2026.

在 2025 年放緩之後，我們看到該事業部持續取得進展；隨著業務在出貨量與產品組合正常化的過程中推進，趨勢正趨於穩定。在我們空氣與液體處理（Air and Liquid Processing）事業部需求持續強勁的帶動下，ALP 於 2026 年第一季創下調整後 EBITDA 與客戶訂單的歷史新高。

To elaborate further on this performance, I will now turn the call over to David Anderson, Chief Financial Officer and President of our Air and Liquid segment.

為了進一步說明這項表現，我現在把電話會議交給 David Anderson，他是財務長並兼任我們空氣與液體事業部總裁。

Thank you, Brett. Good morning. Tremendous start to the year for Air & Liquid as ALP set new records in customer orders and adjusted EBITDA. Q1 revenue increased 17%, driven by higher revenue in all product lines. Adjusted EBITDA in Q1 increased 52% versus prior year as higher revenue, improved manufacturing efficiencies and positive product mix, drove adjusted EBITDA to the highest level in Air & Liquid's history.

謝謝你，Brett。各位早安。空氣與液體事業部在今年有一個非常強勁的開局，ALP 在客戶訂單與調整後 EBITDA 方面都創下新紀錄。第一季營收成長 17%，主要由所有產品線營收提升所帶動。第一季調整後 EBITDA 較去年同期成長 52%；更高的營收、製造效率改善以及正向的產品組合，推動調整後 EBITDA 達到空氣與液體事業部歷史最高水準。

Backlog increased $23.5 million or 19% in the quarter as customer orders increased to record levels. Customer orders were 40% higher than any prior quarter as we continue to see extremely strong demand for our custom engineered products across multiple markets. Data centers are causing increasing demand in the power generation market, which is fueling demand in both our commercial pump and nuclear heat exchanger products.

本季在客戶訂單創新高的帶動下，積壓訂單增加 2,350 萬美元（或 19%）。客戶訂單較任何過往季度高出 40%，因為我們持續看到多個市場對我們客製化工程產品的需求極為強勁。資料中心正帶動發電市場需求增加，進而推升我們商用泵浦與核能熱交換器產品的需求。

Our commercial pumps are used in gas turbines, which are seeing strong growth, while we continue to be the dominant supplier of heat exchangers into the growing nuclear market. There continues to be strong demand from the US Navy, and we expect this demand to continue as the Navy moves forward with fleet expansion plans. The manufacturing equipment installed in 2024 has already increased manufacturing capacity for our pump product line, and there is more capacity expansion in process.

我們的商用泵浦用於燃氣渦輪機，而該領域正呈現強勁成長；同時，我們仍是成長中的核能市場熱交換器的主要供應商。美國海軍的需求依然強勁，我們預期隨著海軍推進艦隊擴編計畫，該需求將持續。2024 年安裝的製造設備已提升我們泵浦產品線的製造產能，且更多的產能擴充正在進行中。

Additional manufacturing equipment from the Navy funding program arrived at our facility in early 2026 and is expected to begin producing products in the second quarter of 2026. There is additional equipment from the Navy funding program that is expected to arrive at our facility in the second half of this year. This equipment will position us to meet the long-term growth in this market.

海軍資助計畫的額外製造設備於 2026 年初抵達我們的廠區，預計將於 2026 年第二季開始投產。另有來自海軍資助計畫的其他設備，預計將於今年下半年抵達我們的廠區。這些設備將使我們能夠滿足該市場的長期成長需求。

Demand for custom air handlers remains strong as there continues to be significant demand in the pharmaceutical market for our custom air handling products. With rising market demand and an increasing backlog, we continue to focus on increasing our manufacturing capacity. We are bringing in new equipment, increasing our headcount and improving our manufacturing efficiencies in order to meet the increasing demand. In summary, 2026 is off to a great start, and we are well positioned in markets that are showing significant long-term growth.

客製化空氣處理機（air handler）的需求仍然強勁，因為製藥市場對我們客製化空氣處理產品的需求持續顯著。隨著市場需求上升與積壓訂單增加，我們持續專注於提升製造產能。我們正在導入新設備、增加人力編制並改善製造效率，以滿足不斷增加的需求。總結而言，2026 年開局表現非常好，而我們在呈現顯著長期成長的市場中具備良好布局。

Thank you, David. Sam Lyon, President of Forged and Cast Engineered Products segment, will now share more details regarding his group's performance. Sam?

謝謝你，David。接下來，鍛造與鑄造工程產品事業部總裁 Sam Lyon 將分享更多關於其團隊表現的細節。Sam？

Thank you, Brett, and good morning, everyone. For the first quarter of 2026, the Forged and Cast Engineered Products segment reported net sales of $70.8 million compared to $72.3 million in Q1 of 2025. Sales were relatively flat with Sweden and Slovenia mostly offsetting the loss from the closure of the UK and our distribution business, AUP. Segment adjusted EBITDA was $5.7 million, up from $2.3 million in Q4 and down from $8.3 million in the prior year period.

謝謝你，Brett，各位早安。2026 年第一季，鍛造與鑄造工程產品事業部的淨銷售額為 7,080 萬美元，對比 2025 年第一季的 7,230 萬美元。銷售額大致持平，瑞典與斯洛維尼亞的表現大多抵銷了英國關閉以及我們經銷業務 AUP 所造成的損失。事業部調整後 EBITDA 為 570 萬美元，高於第四季的 230 萬美元，但低於去年同期的 830 萬美元。

Three discrete timing items shape Q1 results. First, to gain a competitive advantage with some European customers, we offer a blend of rolls from our Swedish plant and our joint venture in China. Due to uneven shipments in Q1, we had a less profitable mix, which will reverse in the coming quarters.

有三項獨立的時點因素影響第一季結果。第一，為了在部分歐洲客戶中取得競爭優勢，我們提供由瑞典工廠與中國合資企業生產之轧輥（rolls）的組合。由於第一季出貨不均，我們的產品組合獲利性較低，而這種情況將在未來幾季反轉。

Second, our lower shipments of higher-margin large rolls in the US negatively affected the mix. Tariff uncertainty led many of our customers to defer orders for our highest margin product in Q4 of 2025 and Q1 of 2026. And third, higher cost inventory from Q4 of 2025 flowed through the P&L. This higher cost was driven by production downtime in Q4 due to a softer order book resulting from tariff uncertainty.

第二，我們在美國出貨較少高毛利的大型輥，對產品組合造成不利影響。關稅不確定性導致許多客戶在2025年第四季與2026年第一季延後下單我們毛利最高的產品。第三，2025年第四季的高成本庫存流入損益表。此較高成本主要是由於關稅不確定性使訂單簿轉弱，導致第四季生產停機所致。

The forward-looking picture is much more constructive. The US order book for large rolls has recovered in Q2. The work roll order book is also higher in Q2 and Q3. FEP demand and margins are improved, supported by the tariff landscape. As a result of these factors, we expect the remainder of the year to be stronger. With the increased demand, the only planned outages are the yearly maintenance in the US around the July 4, and the typical summer holidays in Europe. In our last earnings call, I mentioned that two of our competitors were exiting the market.

展望未來的情勢要建設性得多。美國大型輥的訂單簿在第二季已恢復。工作輥的訂單簿在第二季與第三季也更高。在關稅環境的支撐下，FEP需求與毛利率有所改善。基於這些因素，我們預期今年剩餘期間表現將更強。隨著需求增加，唯一規劃的停機為美國約在7月4日前後的年度維護，以及歐洲典型的暑期假期。在上次財報電話會議中，我提到我們有兩家競爭對手正在退出市場。

Marichal Ketin MKB, a cast roll manufacturer in Europe is in receivership and a competitor in South America has exited the cast roll market at the end of 2025 and is currently exiting the forged roll market. This market consolidation is presenting us with opportunities to gain market share. In summary, the underlying demand for our products is improving, supported by the tariff landscape, infrastructure growth, consolidation of roll manufacturers and reshoring. We are also realizing improvements in our Sweden operation due to higher utilization. We are optimistic for the remainder of 2026 and 2027.

歐洲鑄輥製造商Marichal Ketin MKB正處於破產接管程序，而南美的一家競爭對手已於2025年底退出鑄輥市場，並正退出鍛輥市場。此市場整併正為我們帶來取得市占率的機會。總結而言，在關稅環境、基礎建設成長、輥類製造商整併以及回流生產（reshoring）的支撐下，我們產品的基本需求正在改善。由於產能利用率提高，我們在瑞典的營運也正實現改善。我們對2026年剩餘期間以及2027年保持樂觀。

Brett, back to you.

Brett，交回給你。

Thanks, Sam. I'll now turn the call back over to David Anderson, our Chief Financial Officer, for more detail regarding our financial performance for the quarter. Dave?

謝謝，Sam。接下來我把電話交給我們的財務長David Anderson，請他更詳細說明本季的財務表現。Dave？

Thank you, Brett. As indicated in both our Form 10-Q and in our press release, Ampco-Pittsburgh reported Q1 net sales of $108.3 million, which was an increase of 3.9% versus prior year. As discussed in the segment reports, Air and Liquids saw a significant sales increase versus prior year, while FCEP was relatively flat. Q1 adjusted EBITDA of $8 million was $0.8 million lower than prior year. The lower adjusted EBITDA was primarily driven by the temporary timing issues that Sam discussed.

謝謝你，Brett。如我們的10-Q表格與新聞稿所示，Ampco-Pittsburgh第一季淨銷售額為1.083億美元，較去年同期增加3.9%。如各事業部報告所述，Air and Liquids相較去年同期銷售大幅成長，而FCEP則相對持平。第一季調整後EBITDA為800萬美元，較去年同期少80萬美元。調整後EBITDA較低主要是由Sam所提到的暫時性時點問題所致。

These issues were largely offset by the increase in adjusted EBITDA for the ALP segment. Backlog increased 5%, primarily driven by the record order activity in the ALP segment. Total selling and administrative expenses were relatively flat compared to prior year as higher sales commissions and other costs were offset by the elimination of SG&A expenses due to the closures of the UK facility and the small steel distribution business in the US Depreciation and amortization expense was lower by approximately $400,000 due to the closure of the UK facility and the steel distribution business.

這些問題大多被ALP事業部調整後EBITDA的增加所抵銷。在ALP事業部創紀錄的接單活動帶動下，積壓訂單增加5%。總銷售與管理費用相較去年同期大致持平，因較高的銷售佣金與其他成本，被英國廠關閉以及美國小型鋼材配銷業務關閉所帶來的SG&A費用消除所抵銷。折舊與攤銷費用因英國廠與鋼材配銷業務關閉而減少約40萬美元。

The change in other income and expense was primarily due to lower net pension and other post-retirement income, which is principally attributable to the US defined benefit plan reaching a fully funded status in early 2026, resulting in a change in its investment strategies to a more conservative portfolio. At March 31, 2026, the corporation's liquidity position included cash on hand of $9.2 million and undrawn availability on our revolving credit facility of $30.8 million.

其他收入與費用的變動主要是由於淨退休金及其他退休後收入降低，主要歸因於美國確定給付計畫在2026年初達到完全提撥狀態，因而將其投資策略調整為較保守的投資組合。截至2026年3月31日，公司流動性部位包括現金餘額920萬美元，以及我們循環信用額度中尚未動用的可用額度3,080萬美元。

In summary, while there were some short-term timing issues in Q1, there were a number of positives that position us for the rest of the year, including our liquidity position, the fully funded defined benefit plan and the positive impact from the UK plant closure in late 2025.

總結而言，雖然第一季存在一些短期時點問題，但也有多項正面因素使我們在今年剩餘期間具備良好態勢，包括我們的流動性部位、已完全提撥的確定給付計畫，以及2025年底英國工廠關閉帶來的正面影響。

Operator, at this time, we would now like to open the line for questions.

接線員，現在我們想開放電話線供提問。

(Operator Instructions)

(接線員指示)

Bruce Galloway, Galloway.

Bruce Galloway，Galloway。

It looks like it was a pretty good quarter, a few hiccups over there. A couple of questions. Number one, back in March, you stated that the order book was up 38% and Air and Liquid was up 73%. And at the end of the quarter, the numbers were a little muted from there. So maybe you could explain that.

看起來這一季表現相當不錯，只是有幾個小插曲。我有幾個問題。第一，回到3月時，你們表示訂單簿成長38%，而Air and Liquid成長73%。但到季末時，數字看起來就沒那麼亮眼。所以也許你們可以解釋一下。

And my second question is you had a lot of adjustments and a lot of restructuring costs that occurred in the fourth quarter and carried on into the first quarter. What's the total amount of all that as far as EBITDA goes?

第二個問題是，你們在第四季有很多調整項目與重整成本，並延續到第一季。就EBITDA而言，這些合計的總金額是多少？

Bruce, it's Dave. I can address your first question on the orders. And it's a little bit of comparing two different things. Order book is certainly up for the quarter. And in what we just presented, we were comparing sequentially to the fourth quarter. The press releases we had earlier in the year were comparing to prior year at the same time. So a little apples and oranges there, but all positive, all going in a good direction. And your question on adjusted EBITDA, Bruce?

Bruce，我是Dave。我可以先回答你第一個關於訂單的問題。這有點像是在比較兩個不同的東西。本季訂單簿確實是增加的。而我們剛才呈現的是與第四季相比的季對季變化。我們今年稍早的新聞稿則是與去年同期相比。所以有點像拿蘋果比橘子，但都是正面的、都朝好的方向發展。至於你關於調整後EBITDA的問題，Bruce？

Yeah, yeah. You said you had a lot of adjustments, ramping up Sweden, moving stuff to the -- out of UK, the pension defined plan. How much of the extraordinary expenses were there that -- and what does that translate to nonrecurring as far as EBITDA goes?

對，對。你提到有很多調整，像是瑞典產能爬坡、把東西從英國移出、退休金確定給付計畫。那些一次性費用有多少——就非經常性而言，換算到EBITDA是什麼程度？

I think the biggest part is forged and cast where you can see the results at the Q1 versus prior year. And our expectation is we will be going up over those numbers. So that was really in the FCEP section. So I think that difference is the timing issues that we were talking about. That's the primary difference. And that's what we see reversing out as we go into the next quarters.

我認為最大的一部分是在鍛造與鑄造那塊，你可以從第一季相較去年同期的結果看出來。而我們的預期是，接下來會高於那些數字。所以那主要是在FCEP的部分。因此我認為那個差異就是我們一直在談的時點問題。那是主要差異。而我們預期隨著進入接下來幾季，這些影響會反轉消退。

But how much was that? Could you quantify? Was it $3 million in EBITDA, $2 million?

但那是多少？你能量化一下嗎？是EBITDA 300萬美元、200萬美元？

Closer to $3 million.

比較接近300萬美元。

Okay. Closer to $3 million. So kind of like on a normalized basis, you pretty much made like $8 million for the quarter.

好的。比較接近300萬美元。所以以某種常態化基礎來看，你們這一季大概賺了800萬美元。

Correct.

沒錯。

Yeah. And I guess for -- well, we made $8 million. So for FCEP, it would have been closer to --

是的。我想就——嗯，我們賺了800萬美元。所以就FCEP而言，會更接近——

$11 -- it would have been closer to $11 million --

1100萬美元——會更接近1100萬美元——

Correct. And just a comment, Bruce, this is Sam. That timing issue between the blended shipments that we sell to European customers, that is purely timing. It will just reverse out in the next several quarters. And the overhead that we carried into the year, that's all pretty well gone as well. And then as I said, the outlook, particularly in North America is quite constructive from our customers. If you look at any of their earnings calls, their volumes are all going up and we're seeing that as well. So it's -- we feel like, as Brett said, we've kind of come through the trough at this point.

沒錯。另外補充一下，Bruce，我是Sam。我們賣給歐洲客戶的混合出貨之間的時間差問題，純粹是時點因素。它會在接下來幾個季度回轉。而我們年初承擔的間接費用，也幾乎都已經消化掉了。再者如我所說，展望方面，特別是在北美，我們從客戶那邊看到相當建設性的訊號。如果你看他們任何一場法說會，他們的出貨量都在上升，我們也同樣看到了。所以——我們覺得，正如Brett所說，我們此刻大概已經走過谷底了。

Okay. Also, are you getting any tariff money back?

好的。另外，你們有拿回任何關稅款嗎？

Well, if we do, it will go right back to our customers. Everything -- every tariff that we had to pay, we had a line item that went to them. So -- but yes, we should. And I think that's a positive, too, because the new -- the way that the tariffs are going forward, we'll probably pay about half as much as we would have paid, which is just better for borrowing and our ABL.

嗯，如果有的話，我們會直接退回給客戶。我們支付的每一筆關稅，都有一個明細項目轉嫁給他們。所以——但會的，我們應該會拿回一些。而且我認為這也是正面因素，因為新的——未來關稅的方式，我們大概只需要支付原本的一半，這對借款以及我們的ABL（資產基礎貸款）都更有利。

Okay. How much business were you doing in the UK? And how much of that total amount switched over to Sweden?

好的。你們在英國做了多少業務？而其中有多少比例轉到瑞典？

We were doing at the end of last year, probably $30 million or so annualized in 2025 and half of that or so would go to Sweden, half to two-third.

去年年底時，我們在2025年按年化計算大概是3000萬美元左右，其中大約一半會轉到瑞典，可能一半到三分之二。

Okay. So on the revenue bar, you're not really comparing apples-to-apples. You have basically a discontinued operation in there, which cost you about $15 million in revenues, but obviously is helping you on the EBITDA line. Are you still on track to pick up about $9 million in savings from the closure of the UK facility?

好的。所以在營收這一塊，你們其實不是在做同口徑比較。你們基本上把一個已終止營運的部分算在裡面，這讓你們少了大約1500萬美元的營收，但顯然對EBITDA那一行是有幫助的。你們仍然按計畫可從關閉英國廠取得大約900萬美元的節省嗎？

We've always said $7 million to $8 million, but yes, we're still on.

我們一直說的是700萬到800萬美元，但沒錯，我們仍然在軌道上。

Okay. $7 million to $8 million.

好的。700萬到800萬美元。

John Bair, Ascend Wealth Advisors.

John Bair，Ascend Wealth Advisors。

A couple of questions here. Number one, now that you seem to have hit an inflection point. What are your thoughts on debt reduction overall? That's question one. And then I've got a couple of additionals, that I'd like to ask.

這裡有幾個問題。第一，既然你們看起來已經到達一個拐點。你們對整體降債有什麼想法？這是第一個問題。然後我還有幾個補充問題想問。

John, it's Dave. I can answer that one on debt reduction. I mean that is one of our primary focuses as we move towards generating positive cash flow this year. We do expect debt reduction to occur as we go through this year. That's certainly one of our focuses is improving the balance sheet on that regard.

John，我是Dave。我可以回答關於降債的問題。我的意思是，隨著我們今年朝向產生正向現金流，這是我們的主要重點之一。我們確實預期今年會逐步降債。這當然也是我們的重點之一，也就是在這方面改善資產負債表。

How much -- can you quantify or do you have a ballpark range of what you think you might be able to accomplish on that based on your order trends overall?

大概多少——你能量化一下，或是有沒有一個你認為基於整體訂單趨勢可以達成的概略區間？

I would think reasonable is $8 million to $10 million or something in the balance of this year.

我認為合理的話，今年剩餘期間大概是800萬到1000萬美元左右。

Okay. And is there any potential for any kind of refinancing that might lower your overall interest costs? Or you pretty well settled in with that?

好的。那有沒有任何再融資的可能性，能降低你們整體利息成本？還是你們基本上已經就那樣定下來了？

We're pretty well settled, but we always evaluate if there's a better option somewhere. But I don't really expect that right now.

我們基本上已經定下來了，但我們一向都會評估是否有更好的選項。不過我目前不太預期會有。

And then outside of the Air and Liquid products, Navy activity and so forth, what are you seeing domestically with other aspects of the business? I know you did mention there was kind of a flattish situation with Forged because of tariffs and some of the other uncertainties. But -- and you have indicated that you'd see more positive in the back half of '26.

另外，除了Air和Liquid產品、海軍活動等等之外，你們在國內其他業務面向看到什麼情況？我知道你們確實提到Forged因為關稅和其他不確定性而有點持平。但是——你們也表示在26年下半年會更正面。

I guess -- this is Sam. The large roll orders that were suppressed in Q4 and Q1, I mean, they were down probably on average, 35% from normal. And they've -- in the next two quarters, it's completely recovered. So that was kind of the biggest issue. And those are a little bit more capital purchase items from the customers. They have a little leeway when they buy and when they don't buy them. And so they held off on those.

我想——我是Sam。在第四季和第一季被壓抑的大型輥（roll）訂單，平均大概比正常水準低了35%。而在接下來兩個季度，已經完全恢復。所以那算是最大的問題。而那些對客戶來說比較像資本性採購項目。他們在何時買、何時不買，彈性比較大。所以他們就先延後了那些採購。

And again, we're also seeing very strong demand on -- particularly in Q3 on the Forged side for work rolls. And we're also currently in the midst of -- part of the backlog issue, too, is we're currently finalizing our next year's orders with our two biggest customers as we speak. So one of them will be done in Q2 and probably one to be done in early Q3. So that this period in time is a low point. If you look every year, it's kind of the low point for our backlog for FCEP as we negotiate 2027.

另外，我們也看到——特別是在第三季——Forged端對工作輥（work rolls）的需求非常強勁。而且我們目前也正在——積壓訂單的部分原因是，我們正在與兩大客戶敲定明年的訂單。其中一家會在第二季完成，另一家可能在第三季初完成。所以這段期間是低點。如果你看每一年，這段時間通常都是我們FCEP積壓訂單的低點，因為我們正在協商2027年的訂單。

And is that basically just kind of wait the wait and see with all the uncertainties that are out there economically, perhaps that and inventory has kind of been depleted so that you are entering a more robust, hopefully, a more robust ordering cycle and usage. In other words, is the steel companies activities picking up. Is that your sense that they're picking up enough that they feel more comfortable in ordering, say, larger needs?

那基本上是否就是在面對外部經濟上的各種不確定性時，採取觀望、等著看？也許再加上庫存已經被消化得差不多，所以你們正進入一個更強勁——希望是更強勁——的下單與使用週期。換句話說，鋼鐵公司的活動是否正在回升？你的感覺是，他們回升到足以讓他們在下單時更有信心，例如訂購更大量的需求嗎？

Well, just it's purely the -- when demand goes down, there's a lag. So they're buying supplies, which rolls as a supply for a certain level of demand. So as demand goes down, they have an inventory overhang. Well, now the opposite is occurring. So demand is going up. So they directly have to purchase more rules.

嗯，這純粹是——當需求下降時，會有一個滯後。所以他們會先採購供應品，而這些軋輥（rolls）是針對某一個需求水準所配置的供應。因此當需求下滑時，他們就會出現庫存過剩的壓力。而現在相反的情況正在發生。需求正在上升。所以他們就必須直接採購更多軋輥。

And the other thing, we did not have some business in 2026 because of the tariffs in Europe. People were nervous about buying stuff from the United States. That's all gone, and we have those orders back in the '27 order book as well. So I think for the most part, everybody is -- the tariffs are all normalized. Everybody is acceptable. Everybody understands what they are now, and we're kind of back to a more normalized state.

另外一點是，因為歐洲的關稅，我們在2026年少了一些業務。大家對於從美國採購產品感到緊張。那都已經過去了，我們也把那些訂單重新納入到2027年的訂單簿中。所以我認為大致上，大家——關稅都已經正常化。大家都能接受。大家也都了解現在的關稅狀況，我們算是回到比較正常的狀態。

And do you think there's some reshoring activity that's helping boost demand?

你認為是否有一些回流（reshoring）活動正在幫助推升需求？

Well, in the US, definitely. That's demand is much better on the infrastructure, data centers. Dave mentioned the pharmaceutical sites that are being built. All that is use of steel.

嗯，在美國，確實有。基礎建設、資料中心的需求好很多。Dave提到正在興建的製藥廠區。這些都會用到鋼材。

Okay. Very good. Last question, you mentioned in the prepared remarks there about two competitors exiting the market. Is that due to a softening of demand overall for them? Or they just not have the volumes that could justify remaining in that market? And how easy or maybe that's not the right word. How likely is it that you'll be able to pick up the market share that is being left behind by their exiting the market?

好的。非常好。最後一個問題，你在事先準備的講稿中提到有兩個競爭對手退出市場。那是因為他們整體需求轉弱嗎？還是他們的量不足以支撐繼續留在那個市場？以及有多容易——或許「容易」不是最恰當的詞。你們有多大可能性可以承接他們退出後留下的市占？

Well, in Europe, the European competitor, Europe market was oversupplied, which is the main reason why we got out of the UK as well. So that's a real positive for us there. And then in the South America, which they didn't announce it publicly, so I can't say who it is, but it's a noncore business for them, and they just decided it wasn't worth managing.

嗯，在歐洲，那家歐洲競爭對手所在的歐洲市場供給過剩，這也是我們退出英國的主要原因。所以那對我們來說是非常正面的。至於南美，他們沒有公開宣布，所以我不能說是哪一家，但那對他們而言是非核心業務，他們只是決定不值得再去管理。

On the South American competitor, that we will definitely -- we're being called directly by customers, and we have orders that we haven't had in years because of them going out of exiting the business. And in Europe, we'll compete and get our share from that as well. So that's all very positive.

就南美那家競爭對手而言，我們肯定會——客戶直接打電話給我們，我們也拿到一些多年來因為他們而沒拿到的訂單，因為他們退出了這項業務。而在歐洲，我們也會競爭並從中取得我們的份額。所以這些都非常正面。

(Operator Instructions)

（接線員指示）

Justin Bergner, Gabelli Funds.

Justin Bergner，Gabelli Funds。

The question about the exits of the competitors was just answered, but I had one more question. Any benefit from the revised Section 232 tariffs that's material for your business?

關於競爭對手退出的問題剛剛已經回答了，但我還有一個問題。修訂後的232條款關稅（Section 232 tariffs）是否對你們的業務帶來任何具實質性的好處？

Yeah. There's a couple of things, Justin. One is that cast rules, so the rules from Sweden, those have been pretty dramatically reduced. So it -- while the tariffs didn't affect us greatly, it puts us on more level playing field with the US competitor that we have, and we won't have to pay the tariff and foot the bill. So that's a positive.

有的。Justin，有幾點。其中一點是鑄造軋輥（cast rolls），也就是來自瑞典的軋輥，那些關稅已經大幅降低。所以——雖然關稅對我們的影響本來不算太大，但這讓我們與我們在美國的競爭對手站在更公平的競爭基礎上，而且我們不必再支付關稅、自己吸收成本。所以這是正面的。

And then the tariffs on the FEP products stayed in place. That's still at 50%, which is a healthy barrier. So that's helping our FEP order book. It's probably double what it was last year, and the margins are much better as well. So I think if you look at the total picture, it's kind of landed in a good spot for us, better than it was four months ago.

另外，FEP產品的關稅仍然維持。仍然是50%，這是一道很強的屏障。因此這有助於我們的FEP訂單簿。它大概是去年的兩倍，而且毛利也好很多。所以我認為如果你看整體情況，對我們來說落在一個不錯的位置，比四個月前更好。

(Operator Instructions) It appears that we have no further questions at this time. This concludes our question-and-answer session. I would now like to turn the conference back over to Mr. Brett McBrayer for any closing remarks.

（接線員指示）看起來目前沒有其他問題。問答環節到此結束。我現在想把電話交回給Brett McBrayer先生，請他做任何結語。

Sir?

先生？

Thank you. In closing, today, I want to thank our employees who continue to make a positive impact each and every day. With improving market conditions and the actions taken in the second half of 2025 in our Forged and Cast segment, we expect to recognize again an annual adjusted EBITDA improvement of $7 million to $8 million moving forward. I want to thank our Board of Directors and our shareholders for your continued support. Thank you for joining our call this morning.

謝謝。最後，我想感謝我們的員工，他們每天都持續帶來正面的影響。隨著市場狀況改善，以及我們在2025年下半年於鍛造與鑄造（Forged and Cast）事業部所採取的行動，我們預期未來將再次實現年度調整後EBITDA提升7百萬至8百萬美元。我也要感謝董事會與股東持續的支持。感謝各位今天早上參與我們的電話會議。

Thank you, sir, and to the rest of the management team. This concludes today's conference call. At this time, you may disconnect your lines. Thank you. Take care, and have a blessed day, everyone.

謝謝您，也謝謝其他管理團隊成員。今天的電話會議到此結束。此時各位可以掛斷電話線。謝謝。請保重，祝各位今天平安順心。