Materials are physical substances used as inputs to production or manufacturing. Manufacturing (from Latin manu factura, "making by hand" is the use of tools and labor to make things for use or sale Raw materials are first extracted or harvested from the earth and divided into a form that can be easily transported and stored, then processed to produce semi-finished materials. These can be input into a new cycle of production and finishing processes to create finished materials, ready for distribution and consumption. Finishing is the procedure that some single malt Scotch whisky undergoes whereby the spirit is matured in a cask of a particular origin and then spends time in a cask of different Distribution (or place) is one of the four elements of Marketing mix. In economics consumption is the primary motivating force in the wealth or utility maximizing paradigm

An example of a raw material is cotton, which can be processed into thread, which can then be woven into cloth, a semi-finished material. Cotton is a soft staple Fibre that grows around the seeds of the cotton plant ( Gossypium sp A textile is a flexible material comprised of a network of natural or artificial Fibres often referred to as thread or Yarn. Cutting and sewing the fabric turns it into a garment, which is a finished material. Clothing (also called clothes, accoutrements, accouterments, or habiliments) protects the Human body from extreme Weather Steelmaking is another example—raw materials are mined, refined and processed into steel, a semi-finished material. Steelmaking is the second step in producing Steel from Iron ore. Steel is an Alloy consisting mostly of Iron, with a Carbon content between 0 Steel is then used as an input in many other industries to make finished products.

See also

• Biomaterial
• Commodity
• List of building materials
• Materials science
• Natural resource

The development of biomaterials is not a new area of Science, having existed for around half a century A commodity is anything for which there is demand but which is supplied without qualitative differentiation across a market Building materials used in the Construction industry to create buildings and structures. Materials Science or Materials Engineering is an interdisciplinary field involving the properties of matter and its applications to various areas of Science and Natural resources are naturally occurring substances that are considered valuable in their relatively unmodified ( natural) form

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