CEMA reports booked orders for October up 11% over October 2012

The Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association (CEMA) has reported that its October 2013 booked orders increased 11.0% when compared to October 2012 orders.

October 2013 booked orders when compared to September 2013 booked orders were up 55.4%. October booked orders were up 9.4% for bulk handling equipment and up 92.5% for unit handling equipment when compared to September.

CEMA executive vice president Bob Reinfried said in a recent interview that the numbers were welcome news following several months of performance that fell slightly below 2012’s record levels. “It’s still going to be tough to beat last year’s numbers, but the unit handling folks nearly doubled their orders in the last month. If they finish the year in the same way we might still end up matching last year’s sales,” Reinfried said. “As of right now, we’re about $600 million shy of last year’s $10.5 billion, so the 2% year-over-year decline we predicted in the fall still appears accurate.”

CEMA’s October 2013 billed sales (shipments) increased by 3.5% when compared to October 2012 sales. October 2013 billed sales when compared to September 2013 billed sales were up 8.7%. October billed sales were down 2.8% for bulk handling equipment and up 17.9% for unit handling equipment when compared to September.