TEMPE, Ariz. — October 1, 2018 — Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in September, and the overall economy grew for the 113th consecutive month, say the nation’s supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM® Report On Business®.

The report was issued today by Timothy R. Fiore, CPSM, C.P.M., chair of the Institute for Supply Management® (ISM®) Manufacturing Business Survey Committee: “The September PMI® registered 59.8 percent, a decrease of 1.5 percentage points from the August reading of 61.3 percent. The New Orders Index registered 61.8 percent, a decrease of 3.3 percentage points from the August reading of 65.1 percent. The Production Index registered 63.9 percent, a 0.6 percentage point increase compared to the August reading of 63.3 percent. The Employment Index registered 58.8 percent, an increase of 0.3 percentage point from the August reading of 58.5 percent. The Supplier Deliveries Index registered 61.1 percent, a 3.4-percentage point decrease from the August reading of 64.5 percent. The Inventories Index registered 53.3 percent, a decrease of 2.1 percentage points from the August reading of 55.4 percent. The Prices Index registered 66.9 percent in September, a 5.2-percentage point decrease from the August reading of 72.1 percent, indicating higher raw materials prices for the 31st consecutive month.

“Comments from the panel reflect continued expanding business strength. Demand remains strong, with the New Orders Index at 60 percent or above for the 17th straight month, and the Customers’ Inventories Index remaining low. The Backlog of Orders Index continued to expand, but at lower levels compared to the previous month. Consumption improved, with production and employment continuing to expand, at higher levels compared to August, despite shortages in labor and materials. Inputs — expressed as supplier deliveries (decreased), inventories and imports — improved compared to prior month’s activity. But continued supply chain inefficiencies led to an increased consumption of inventory and a slight expansion of imports, which adequately supported production output.  Lead-time extensions, steel and aluminum disruptions, supplier labor issues, and transportation difficulties continue to limit potential, but at more manageable levels.

“Export orders expanded, but four major industries are no longer contributing. Price pressure continues, but the index softened for the fourth straight month and dropped below 70 for the first time since December 2017. Demand remains robust, but employment resources and supply chains continue to struggle, but to a lesser degree. Respondents are again overwhelmingly concerned about tariff-related activity, including how reciprocal tariffs will impact company revenue and current manufacturing locations,” says Fiore.

Of the 18 manufacturing industries, 15 reported growth in September, in the following order: Textile Mills; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Plastics & Rubber Products; Computer & Electronic Products; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Machinery; Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; Paper Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Chemical Products; Petroleum & Coal Products; Transportation Equipment; Furniture & Related Products; Fabricated Metal Products; and Nonmetallic Mineral Products. The only industry reporting contraction in September is Primary Metals.

Comments:

“The market is in a state of chaos with the latest round of tariffs. As an electronics original equipment manufacturer, component prices have been impacted almost across the board. The tariffs have caused a mass rush to buy up inventories of affected products in order to minimize the long-term financial impact. This in turn, is causing market constraints which further drive-up the cost and increase lead times.” (Computer & Electronic Products)

“Tariffs starting to take a bite out of profitability.” (Chemical Products)

“Business is strong and relatively stable. Tariffs are putting pressure on Chinese imports. Labor rates are increasing as it is very difficult to find help.” (Furniture & Related Products)

“The economy’s strength is holding, [and] outlook for the industry is positive, although continuing margin compression in consumer packaged goods is restricting general growth momentum from the greater economy.” (Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products)

“Still extremely strong through November; starting to see a decline for steel prices for December.” (Fabricated Metal Products)

“General available capacity at suppliers continues to decrease, creating supply issues.” (Machinery)

“Tariffs are creating a drag on some of our export opportunities.” (Plastics & Rubber Products)

“Sourcing hourly workers for remote locations continues to be a challenge for both full-time and part-time opportunities. Have implemented a wide variety of recruiting techniques and suppliers to aid us in sourcing this hard-to-find talent.” (Paper Products)

“Orders are coming in, but from a limited number of customers. The future looks very promising.” (Primary Metals)

“Suppliers are impacted by China tariffs, [which is] delaying or cancelling manufacturing transfer projects.” (Miscellaneous Manufacturing)

Posted October 1, 2018

Source: Institute for Supply Management

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — September 28, 2018 — Roscoe Company, a Chicago-based independent industrial textile service facility, has earned the Hygienically Clean Food Safety designation, reflecting its commitment to best management practices (BMPs) in laundering as verified by on-site inspection and its capability to produce hygienically clean textiles as quantified by ongoing microbial testing.

The certification confirms the laundry’s dedication to compliance and processing linens and garments using BMPs as described in its quality assurance documentation, the focal point for Hygienically Clean inspectors’ evaluation of critical control points (CCPs) that minimize risk. The independent, third-party inspection must confirm essential evidence that:

• Employees are properly trained and protected;
• Managers understand legal requirements;
• OSHA-compliant; and
• Physical plant operates effectively.

In addition, Roscoe’s facility passed three rounds of outcome-based microbial testing, indicating that their processes are producing Hygienically Clean uniforms, garments and linens and diminished presence of harmful bacteria. To maintain their certification, laundry plants must pass quarterly testing to ensure that as laundry conditions change, such as water quality, textile fabric composition and wash chemistry, laundered product quality is consistently maintained.

This process eliminates subjectivity by focusing on outcomes and results that verify textiles cleaned in these facilities meet appropriate hygienically clean standards and BMPs for full- and limited-service restaurants and other food service operations.

Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) practices are examined in the Hygienically Clean Food Safety inspection process, evaluating the plant’s techniques for:

• Conducting hazard analysis;
• Determining CCPs, monitoring their control, correcting them if not under control;
• Validating and verifying HACCP system effectiveness; and
• Documenting and record-keeping to show ongoing conformance.

Inspections also evaluate practices relevant to handling and processing textile products used in food manufacturing/processing establishments for adherence to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) directives. Introduced in 2014, Hygienically Clean Food Safety brought to linen and uniform service laundering in North America the international cleanliness standards used worldwide by the Certification Association for Professional Textile Services and the European Committee for Standardization.

“Congratulations to Roscoe on their certification,” said Joseph Ricci, TRSA president and CEO. “This achievement proves their commitment to infection prevention and that their laundry takes every step possible to prevent human illness.”

This achievement complements Roscoe’s Clean Green certification, which they’ve held since 2012, proving their commitment to customers that their laundry is dedicated to standards for operational efficiency and sustainability. Clean Green certification underscores ongoing sustainability efforts and adherence to the highest standards in their production and delivery operations.

Posted October 1, 2018

Source: TRSA

WASHINGTON — October 1, 2018 — The United States, Mexico and Canada have concluded negotiations on a trade agreement to replace NAFTA. The text of the deal, now referred to as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, was released by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative last night.

“The U.S. textile industry is pleased the United States, Mexico and Canada have reached an agreement because Canada and Mexico are its largest trading partners,” said National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) President and CEO Auggie Tantillo as he noted that products from the textile and apparel supply chain accounted for nearly $12 billion in U.S. exports to Canada and Mexico in 2017.

“Unlike the original NAFTA, the new agreement includes a separate textile and apparel chapter. This outcome is a tangible recognition by all three parties of the importance of textile manufacturing to the regional economy,” Tantillo added as he explained that NCTO would not be making any further comment with respect to the deal until the substance of the agreement could be carefully analyzed by NCTO.

NCTO is a Washington, DC-based trade association that represents domestic textile manufacturers, including artificial and synthetic filament and fiber producers.

• U.S. employment in the textile supply chain was 550,500 in 2017.
• The value of shipments for U.S. textiles and apparel was $77.9 billion in 2017.
• U.S. exports of fiber, textiles and apparel were $28.6 billion in 2017.
• Capital expenditures for textile and apparel production totaled $2.4 billion in 2016, the last year for which data is available.

Posted October 1, 2018

Source:  National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO)

WASHINGTON — October 1, 2018 — The National Retail Federation issued the following statement from President and CEO Matthew Shay after the U.S., Canada and Mexico reached a deal updating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

“We are pleased a deal has been reached that preserves NAFTA’s trilateral framework, which is critical to protecting North American supply chains that support millions of American jobs. The administration, as well as officials from Canada and Mexico, should be applauded for months of hard work aimed at modernizing NAFTA for the 21st century —  a goal retailers have shared from the start. We will carefully review all the details of the agreement to ensure it promotes U.S. economic growth and maintains access to the products American families need at the prices they can afford.”

Posted October 1, 2018

Source:  The National Retail Federation (NRF)