Plastics machinery shipments finished strong in 2018

The primary plastics machinery in North America increased in the fourth quarter of 2018, according to statistics from the Plastics Industry Associations Committee on Equipment Statistics.

The preliminary estimate of shipments value from reporting companies totalled $376.9 million, showing an eight per cent increase from the third quarter.

Injection moulding shipments rose by 8.8 per cent and single and twin extrusion equipment shipments increased 4.6 per cent and 1.5 per cent respectively.

Comparing the fourth quarter 2018 shipments to the fourth quarter 2017, the value of single and twin extrusion shipments rose by an impressive 33.7 per cent and 52 per cent respectively.

However, injection moulding shipments value was 4.9 per cent lower over the same period.

Perc Pineda, Chief Economist of the Plastic Industry Association, said: “We projected higher shipment for the fourth quarter and that’s exactly what transpired. The increase is not due to inflationary pressures of the economy, which one tends to think about when dollar value increases, but purely an increase in the quantity of shipments.”

“The unit shipments of injection moulding rose 2.7 per cent. Single screw and twin screw extruders shipments increased 5.6 per cent and 16.1 per cent respectively. All told, quantity of shipments of primary plastics machinery increased by 3.8 per cent from the third quarter.”