U.S. machine tool consumption was up 4.8% to $725.59 million in the first quarter 2006 compared with the same period last year, according to the American Machine Tool Distributors’ Association and The Association for Manufacturing Technology.
March U.S. manufacturing technology consumption totaled $247.21 million, down 5.8% from February and down 10% from the total of $274.57 million reported for March 2005.
“U.S. manufacturing companies continue to invest in new machine tool technology to further improve their manufacturing productivity to keep pace with economic growth,” said John J. Healy, AMTDA president. “The Western and Central regions of the U.S. showed particularly strong double digit growth spurred by aerospace, defense, medical and energy manufacturing activity, while parts of the Midwest continue to experience the struggles of the automotive industry.”
These numbers and all data in this report are based on the totals of actual data reported by companies participating in the USMTC program.
The United States Manufacturing Technology Consumption (USMTC) report, jointly compiled by the two trade associations representing the production and distribution of manufacturing technology, provides regional and national U.S. consumption data of domestic and imported machine tools and related equipment.
Northeast Region
Manufacturing technology consumption in the Northeast Region in March totaled $36.96 million, down 8% from February’s $40.19 million and level with March 2005. At $103.15 million, the year-to-date total was 6.9% higher than the comparable figure a year ago.
Southern Region
March manufacturing technology consumption in the Southern Region stood at $34.24 million, 14% less than February’s $39.82 million and down 45.8% when compared with March 2005. With a year-to-date total of $109.44 million, 2006 was running 15.7% behind 2005 at the same time.
Midwestern Region
At $77.66 million, March Midwestern Region manufacturing technology consumption was 14.2% less than February’s $90.47 million, and 12.6% less than the March 2005 total. The year-to-date total of $234.9 million was 4.3% lower than last year’s comparable figure.
Central Region
Central Region manufacturing technology consumption in March totaled $61.39 million, down 4.8% from February’s $64.49 million, but 20.8% higher than the total for March 2005. Year-to-date 2006 consumption totaled $177.49 million, a 30.8% improvement over 2005.
Western Region
Totaling $36.95 million, March consumption in the Western Region was 35% higher than February’s $27.38 million, and up 6.6% when compared with last March. At $100.61 million, 2006 year-to-date was up 18.4% compared with 2005 at the same time.
