NEW YORK - Sales to the manufacturing market appear to have bottomed out and, hopefully, an upturn is not too far away, Epicor's CFO Michael Pietrini told attendees yesterday at the Jefferies 3rd Annual Technology Conference. "It's not getting any worse. As odd as it is, it’s a very encouraging sign," said Pietrini. "We are plodding along at the bottom trying to determine where we are." Pietrini said the mild optimism stems from discussions with the company's field sales force.