SMT, PCB Electronics Industry News

IPC RELEASES PCB INDUSTRY RESULTS FOR MAY 2012

Jun 27, 2012

IPC — Association Connecting Electronics Industries® announced today the May findings from its monthly North American Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Statistical Program.

PCB Industry Growth Rates and Book-to-Bill Ratios Announced
Rigid PCB shipments were down 1.9 percent in May 2012 from May 2011, but bookings increased 12.0 percent year over year. Year to date, rigid PCB shipments decreased 5.0 percent and bookings increased 3.1 percent. Compared to the previous month, rigid PCB shipments were up 2.0 percent and rigid bookings gained 1.9 percent. The book-to-bill ratio for the North American rigid PCB industry in May 2012 remained above parity at 1.02.

Flexible circuit shipments in May 2012 were down 10.0 percent, and bookings were down 1.1 percent compared to May 2011. Year to date, flexible circuit shipments decreased 9.1 percent and bookings decreased 2.1 percent. Compared to the previous month, flexible circuit shipments decreased 2.6 percent, but flex bookings were up 19.8 percent. The North American flexible circuit book-to-bill ratio remained high at 1.17.

For rigid PCBs and flexible circuits combined, industry shipments in May 2012 decreased 2.6 percent from May 2011 and orders booked increased 10.6 percent from May 2011. Year to date, combined industry shipments were down 5.3 percent and bookings were up 2.6 percent. Compared to the previous month, combined industry shipments for May 2012 increased 1.7 percent and bookings increased 3.3 percent. The combined (rigid and flex) industry book-to-bill ratio in May 2012 decreased slightly but continued in positive territory at 1.03.

North American PCB sales and orders in May continued slightly below last year’s levels and reflected normal seasonal patterns,” said Sharon Starr, IPC director of market research. “The May book-to-bill ratio remained positive for the sixth consecutive month and was especially strong for the flexible circuit segment of the industry. This reinforces our hope that sales will gain strength in the second half of this year.”

The book-to-bill ratios are calculated by dividing the value of orders booked over the past three months by the value of sales billed during the same period from companies in IPC’s survey sample. A ratio of more than 1.00 suggests that current demand is ahead of supply, which is a positive indicator for sales growth over the next two to three months.

Book-to-bill ratios and growth rates for rigid PCBs and flexible circuits combined are heavily affected by the rigid PCB segment. Rigid PCBs represent an estimated 89 percent of the current PCB industry in North America, according to IPC’s World PCB Production Report.

The Role of Domestic Production
IPC’s monthly survey of the North American PCB industry tracks bookings and shipments from U.S. and Canadian facilities, which provide indicators of regional demand. These numbers do not measure U.S. and Canadian PCB production. To track regional production trends, IPC asks survey participants for the percent of their reported shipments that were produced domestically (i.e., in the USA or Canada). In May 2012, 83 percent of total PCB shipments reported by survey participants were domestically produced. Domestic production accounted for 84 percent of rigid PCB and 80 percent of flexible circuit shipments in May by IPC’s survey participants. These numbers are significantly affected by the mix of companies in IPC’s survey sample, which change slightly in January, but are kept constant through the remainder of the year.

Bare Circuits versus Assembly
Flexible circuit sales typically include value-added services such as assembly, in addition to the bare flexible circuits. In May, the flexible circuit manufacturers in IPC’s survey sample indicated that bare circuits accounted for about 41 percent of their shipment value reported for the month. Assembly and other services make up a large and growing segment of flexible circuit producers’ businesses. This figure is also sensitive to changes in the survey sample, which may occur at the beginning of each calendar year.

Interpreting the Data
Year-on-year and year-to-date growth rates provide the most meaningful view of industry growth. Month-to-month comparisons should be made with caution as they may reflect cyclical effects and short-term volatility. Because bookings tend to be more volatile than shipments, changes in the book-to-bill ratios from month to month may not be significant unless a trend of more than three consecutive months is apparent. It is also important to consider changes in bookings and shipments to understand what is driving changes in the book-to-bill ratio.

The information in IPC’s monthly PCB industry statistics is based on data provided by a representative sample of both rigid and flexible PCB manufacturers in the USA and Canada. IPC publishes the PCB Book-to-Bill Ratio and the PCB Statistical Program Report each month. Statistics for the previous month are not available until the last week of the following month.
 



IPC (www.IPC.org) is a global industry association based in Bannockburn, Ill., dedicated to the competitive excellence and financial success of its 3,100 member companies which represent all facets of the electronics industry, including design, printed board manufacturing, electronics assembly and test. As a member-driven organization and leading source for industry standards, training, market research and public policy advocacy, IPC supports programs to meet the needs of an estimated $2.02 trillion global electronics industry. IPC maintains additional offices in Taos, N.M.; Arlington, Va.; Stockholm, Sweden; Moscow, Russia; Bangalore, India; and Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing, China.
 

 

Mar 26, 2024 -

North American PCB Industry Sales Down 11.6 Percent in February

Mar 26, 2024 -

iNEMI/IPC White Paper on Complex Integrated Systems Highlights Future Technology and Manufacturing Ecosystem Needs

Mar 26, 2024 -

North American EMS Industry Up 4.1 Percent in February

Mar 26, 2024 -

Devan Iyer, Industry Leader on Chips Packaging Technology, Joins IPC

Mar 18, 2024 -

Foreign Object Debris for Electronics Manufacturing Course Available in Spanish, French and German

Mar 11, 2024 -

FTG Circuits Earns IPC-1791 Trusted Electronic Designer, Fabricator and Assembler QML Requalification

Mar 11, 2024 -

Best Technical Conference Papers at IPC APEX EXPO 2024 Selected

Mar 11, 2024 -

Top of the Class: IPC APEX EXPO Named One of Trade Show Executive's Fastest 50, Class of 2023

Mar 04, 2024 -

Electronics Industry Praises U.S. Government Notice of Funding Opportunity for "Advanced Packaging" Technologies

Mar 04, 2024 -

Registration Open for Electrical Wire Processing Technology Expo (EWPTE) 2024

1465 more news from Association Connecting Electronics Industries (IPC) »

Mar 27, 2024 -

Red Glue SMT Solutions: A Cost-Effective Approach for Double-Sided PCBs

Mar 26, 2024 -

North American PCB Industry Sales Down 11.6 Percent in February

Mar 26, 2024 -

iNEMI/IPC White Paper on Complex Integrated Systems Highlights Future Technology and Manufacturing Ecosystem Needs

Mar 26, 2024 -

Don Dennison Appointed to Roll Out KIC's Latest Thermal Analysis System Software in the Northeast

Mar 26, 2024 -

Altus Group Achieves Record Sales Milestone with Koh Young Europe

Mar 26, 2024 -

STI Welcomes Edrick Young as the Newest Mechanical Assembly Technician

Mar 26, 2024 -

Anda Technologies Receives 2024 NPI Award for Setting a New Standard in Smart Manufacturing

Mar 26, 2024 -

ZESTRON's Olaf Schoenfeld, Ph.D. to Participate in EV Special Session at IPC APEX Expo

Mar 26, 2024 -

North American EMS Industry Up 4.1 Percent in February

Mar 26, 2024 -

SMTA Europe Announces 2024 Spring Conferences

See electronics manufacturing industry news »

IPC RELEASES PCB INDUSTRY RESULTS FOR MAY 2012 news release has been viewed 580 times

IPC Training & Certification - Blackfox

ICT Total SMT line Provider