Motion controller shipments surge 22% in 2013

Global shipments for motion control products fell by 5% in 2013, according to statistics released by the Motion Control Association (MCA), the industry’s trade group.

“Despite the contraction in global motion control shipments last year, we are optimistic moving into 2014,” said Dana Whalls, vice president of MCA. “The North American economy, which is a strong driver of MCA statistics, is forecasted to be strong to start the year, and we’re anticipating motion control shipments to follow.”

“Despite the overall contraction, the motion controllers category had a very strong year in 2013,” said Alex Shikany, MCA director of market analysis. “We saw shipments of motion controllers soar 22% in 2013 while all other categories declined.”

MCA summarizes market results in quarterly tracking reports and trend analysis reports. These reports examine orders and shipments by major product category with tables and graphics. Growth rates and book to bill ratios are provided as well for each product category.

MCA also provides an economic indicator report, which enables report users to interpret quarterly statistics from the standpoint of macro-economic indicators by individual manufacturing industry, as identified by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).

All reports are available free of charge to all MCA members. Members providing data for the reports receive “full” versions of the reports, which are highly detailed examinations of order and shipment results. Non-participating members receive “abridged” reports, which contain shipment results. Members find the reports valuable as gauges of overall market performance and as benchmarks for assessing relative company performance. To learn more about MCA, visit www.MotionControlOnline.org.