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Posted December 10, 2018

October manufacturing technology orders totaled $467 million

Manufacturing technology orders totaled $467 million in October, capping a three-month total of $1.6 billion since August.


That sum represents the largest three-month total since April 1998. The $4.5 billion year-to-date sum is up an impressive 24 percent from the same 10 months in 2017 and bodes well for a strong finish to 2018. The three-month run overshadowed the 23 percent decline in October orders from September and slim two percent increase over October last year.

"IMTS always creates a September jump in orders but the strength of October and August punctuates that the market is buying for current capacity need, not speculation on future business,” said AMT president Doug Woods. “Right now, manufacturing technology orders are rapidly expanding without apparent concern for trade issues or evolving market conditions because our customers face enormous opportunities now.”

Every region posted lower order levels in October over September. Still, the year-to-date growth in orders remains strong. The Northcentral East posted the smallest gain over 2017 year-to-date at 12 percent.

The improvement in orders reflects larger capital spending by the off-road and highway construction sector as well as some significant investment by the medical equipment sector. The Southeast region has been typically been the fastest growing region over the past several years. However, the Northcentral West region is up 36 percent through the first 10 months of 2018 over 2017, growing one percent faster than the Southeast. The Northcentral West’s growth is in large part due to power generation equipment, aerospace, medical and a couple of significant orders in the construction and highway equipment industry.

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