Manufacturing by the Numbers: Industry stats from August 2024
The old adage ‘you can't manage what you can't measure’ has never been truer, especially in the industrial sector. Having the right data about your plant, your business, and the industry in general is essential if you want your company to thrive.
This monthly roundup highlights the reports, studies, surveys, and insights that are impacting the manufacturing industry. Here are this month’s stats.
Economic activity in the manufacturing sector contracted in July for the fourth consecutive month"The Manufacturing PMI registered 46.8% in July, down 1.7 percentage points from the 48.5% recorded in June." |
New York manufacturing activity edged slightly lower in August"The headline general business conditions index was little changed at -4.7. New orders declined modestly, while shipments held steady." |
Industrial production fell 0.6% in July after increasing 0.3% in June"Manufacturing output stepped down 0.3% as the index for motor vehicles and parts fell nearly 8%; manufacturing excluding motor vehicles and parts rose 0.3%." |
Philadelphia manufacturing activity softened overall in August"The survey’s indicators for current general activity, new orders, and shipments all declined, with the former turning negative. The employment index suggests declines in employment overall." |
New orders for manufactured durable goods increased $26.1 billion or 9.9% in July"This followed a 6.9% June decrease. Excluding transportation, new orders decreased 0.2%. Excluding defense, new orders increased 10.4%." |
Texas factory activity exhibited little growth in August"The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, inched up three points to 1.6, with the low reading signaling only slight growth in output from July." |
U.S. cutting tool orders totaled $208.1 million in June"Orders decreased 2.9% from May 2024 and were down 4.2% from June 2023. Year-to-date shipments totaled $1.27 billion, up 2.6% from shipments made in the first six months of 2023." |
Fifth District manufacturing activity slowed in August"The composite manufacturing index edged down from -17 in July to -19 in August. Of its three components indexes, shipments rose from -21 to -15, new orders decreased from -23 to -26, and employment fell from -5 to -15." |
Manufacturing technology orders grew 4.3% in June"New orders of metalworking machinery were up 4.3% from May 2024 but down 1.6% from June 2023. Year-to-date orders reached $2.2 billion, down 10.7% compared to the first half of 2023." |
About the Author
Alexis GajewskiAlexis Gajewski
Senior Content Strategist
Alexis Gajewski is a manufacturing writer and editor with nearly 20 years of experience covering the people, practices, and technologies that keep industrial facilities running. For more than a decade, she served as Senior Content Strategist for Plant Services, creating content for plant managers, engineers, and maintenance professionals on a variety of industrial topics.
During her tenure, Alexis worked to develop the brand’s digital strategy and helped launch and produce Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast. She also created The Lighter Side of Manufacturing, a weekly blog that explored the inventive and sometimes humorous side of the industry.
Alexis co-founded Influential Women in Manufacturing, a recognition program that honored 49 women in its first two years, earned an industry award for Best Product Launch, and received a proclamation from Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and a commendation from U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth.
She also led newsroom operations and development at a large media company where she set editorial standards, developed training curriculum, and helped support AI adoption for more than 150 editors across 80+ brands spanning manufacturing, industrial processing, automation, and more.
Additionally, Alexis works as a freelance writer and editor, and her areas of interest include continuous improvement, the skilled workforce, and the role of emerging technology on the plant floor.
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