US plastics machinery shipments up 10% in second quarter 2014

WASHINGTON – Rising demand for US-made plastics machinery since the second half of 2013 was sustained through the first half of this year, according to statistics released by the Committee on Equipment Statistics (CES) of SPI (The Plastics Industry Trade Association)

Shipments of primary plastics equipment (injection moulding, extrusion, blow moulding and thermoforming equipment) for reporting companies totaled an estimated $299.3 million in the second quarter. This was slightly below the high $300.3 million in the first quarter 2014 but represented a 10% increase when compared with the total from the second quarter of 2013.

The CES data also showed that the shipments value of injection moulding machinery rose 9% in the second quarter of 2014 when compared with the total from second quarter of last year. The shipments value of single-screw extruders slipped 2%, but the value of shipments of twin-screw extruders (which includes both co-rotating and counter-rotating machines) jumped 63%. The shipments value for blow moulding machines edged down 2% in second quarter.

The CES also compiles data on the auxiliary equipment segment (robotics, temperature control, materials handling, etc.) of the plastics machinery industry. New bookings of auxiliary equipment for reporting companies totaled a record-breaking $108.0 million in the second quarter. This represented a substantial 21% increase when compared with the total from second quarter of 2013.