Washington, D.C., March 31, 2017 –
Fresh off the heels of the third
straight month of manufacturing job growth, the National Association of
Manufacturers (NAM) today released the first Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey since
President Donald Trump took office. The survey shows a dramatic shift in
sentiment, with more than 93 percent of manufacturers feeling positive about
their economic outlook. This is the highest in the survey’s 20-year history, up
from 56.6 percent one year ago and 77.8 percent in December.
The NAM’s
release of the survey coincided with a meeting of small and medium-sized
manufacturers at the White House today.
“Across America,
manufacturers’ optimism is soaring, in no small part because of President
Trump’s laser-like focus on pursuing bold action, particularly on rethinking red
tape to address regulatory reform, to accelerate a jobs surge in America,” said
NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons.
“As the survey shows, manufacturers
of all sizes are now less concerned about the business climate going forward
because they are counting on President Trump to deliver results. Small
manufacturers—more than 90 percent of our membership—are among the hardest hit
by regulatory obstacles. Regulatory costs for small manufacturers with fewer
than 50 employees total almost $35,000 per employee per year—money that could
otherwise go to creating jobs. It’s encouraging to see an administration so
focused on providing regulatory relief to spur manufacturing growth.
“We
are grateful for the chance to meet with the president today as we continue to
tell the White House directly which regulations are still the biggest obstacles
to a manufacturing surge. There is much work to be done, and manufacturers have
the solutions on regulatory reform as well as on infrastructure investment,
workforce development, bold comprehensive tax reform and a host of other
issues.”
The survey shows not only a positive outlook but
also that concerns about the business environment have dropped. When
manufacturers were asked to identify top challenges to their business, concerns
about the business environment fell to third place. This had previously been
respondents’ top concern since the question was added to the survey in 2011.
For the past 20 years, the NAM has surveyed its membership of more than
14,000 large and small manufacturers to gain insight into their economic
outlook, hiring and investment decisions and business concerns. The NAM releases
these results to the public each quarter.
A full write-up of the survey
is available here.
Small and
medium-sized manufacturers in attendance at today’s meeting included the
following:
Drew Greenblatt – NAM Small and Medium Manufacturers Group Chair
President and Owner
Marlin Steel Wire Products LLC
Baltimore, Md.
Charles Wetherington – NAM Small and Medium Manufacturers Group Vice Chair
President
BTE Technologies, Inc.
Hanover, Md.
Matt Barr
Chairman and CEO
Carolina Color Corporation
Salisbury, N.C.
Doug Magyari
CEO
IMMY Inc.
Troy, Mich.
Karen Buchwald Wright
Chairman, President and CEO
Ariel Corporation
Mount Vernon, Ohio
Patricia Miller
CEO
Matrix 4, Inc.
Woodstock, Ill.
Julie Copeland
CEO
Arbill
Philadelphia, Pa.
Ed Paradowski
President
Apache Stainless Equipment Corporation
Beaver Dam, Wis.
Joe Eddy
President and CEO
Eagle Manufacturing Company
Wellsburg, W.Va.
Tom Riordan
President and CEO
Neenah Enterprises, Inc.
Neenah, Wis.
Kellie Johnson
President and CEO
ACE Clearwater Enterprises
Torrance, Calif.
Steve Staub
President
Staub Manufacturing Solutions
Dayton, Ohio
Small and medium-sized manufacturers are the backbone of the
manufacturing industry and at the heart of the NAM’s membership. The NAM’s Power
of Small campaign spotlights their important role, contributions and concerns.
For more information, visit http://nam.org/powerofsmall.
-NAM-
The
National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) is the largest manufacturing
association in the United States, representing small and large
manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states.
Manufacturing employs more than 12 million men and women, contributes
$2.17 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic
impact of any major sector and accounts for more than three-quarters
of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful
voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a
policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and
create jobs across the United States. For more information about the
Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please
visit www.nam.org.