For the second straight quarter, more than one-third of North American manufacturers responding to MFG.com’s MFGWatch survey say they’ve experienced a significant supply chain disruption in the past three months.

Also, expectations for excess capacity and employment growth expressed last quarter did not fully materialize. In October 2009, 62 percent responded that they expected to maintain the capacity of their plants in the coming quarter – but only 34 percent said they had in the most recent survey. As for employment, 13 percent of manufacturers stated in October that they anticipated staff reductions, but 38 percent actually reduced staff.

MFG.com, the largest global sourcing marketplace for the manufacturing industry, conducted its latest two-part survey in early January 2010, targeting supply-side manufacturers and buy-side original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) throughout North America. The survey drew responses from 334 manufacturers of parts and services, purchasing professionals and engineers. An array of industries, including automotive, aerospace, medical, industrial equipment, consumer products and textiles are represented in each MFGWatch quarterly survey.

When asked, 35 percent of purchasing professionals said they had experienced a significant supply chain disruption and had to seek alternative sources to recover. And 34 percent of supply-side manufacturers stated that they had received queries from buyers experiencing supply chain disruptions within the past quarter. For the second quarter in a row, one-third of all manufacturers responding have stated that they have experienced supply chain disruptions, a significant number and trend.

In the October 2009 MFGWatch survey, only 6 percent of sourcing and purchasing professionals said that they expected to reduce the number of their active suppliers by year’s end. Instead, 19 percent say they in fact reduced their supplier base during that time. Similarly, while 40 percent of the same group indicated in October that they expected to add suppliers, only 23 percent did so.

In terms of specific supply chain risks, buy-side OEMs cited material costs (47 percent) and supplier stability (46 percent) as the most important issues to their supply chains. Supply-side manufacturers identified customer stability as the most important issue for the second straight quarter (81 percent).

“Manufacturing continues to lag behind other sectors in the American economy -- and of all the challenges we face, employment appears to be the most serious at the moment,” said Mitch Free, founder and CEO of MFG.com. “While there are opportunities, and the national debate is focusing more on manufacturing’s role in our economy, it will be difficult to take full advantage until we revitalize manufacturing investment and stimulate growth.”

About MFG.com

MFG.com is the largest global sourcing marketplace for the manufacturing industry. MFG.com's platform enables companies to intelligently connect, source, collaborate and perform due diligence with transparency and intellectual property protection. It supports virtually all manufacturing process and industrial components, is in seven major languages, more than 50 currencies and has more than 200,000 members on five continents. MFG.com is based in Atlanta and has offices in Shanghai, Geneva, Paris, Munich and Bangalore. For more information: www.MFG.com.

About MFGWatch

MFG.com has recast its MFGWatch survey as a quarterly snapshot of the North American manufacturing ecosystem. The new MFGWatch is based on separate but correlative input from the online marketplace’s membership of manufacturing buyers and their suppliers. Over time it is designed to be a barometer of manufacturing trends.

Press Contact: Belinda Jones, HiTech Marketing, 860-399-1147, Email Contact
Press Contact: John Q. Pope, MFG.com, 678-384-6371, Email Contact