BANNOCKBURN, IL — North American printed circuit board manufacturers reported August shipments increased 25.2% year-over-year while bookings jumped 25%.

Year to date, PWB shipments are up 19.5% and bookings have risen 32.3%. Sequentially, August shipments increased 4.1% and bookings rose 2.5%. The book-to-bill ratio in August slipped to 1.07, reported IPC, which tracks the data.

The book-to-bill ratio is calculated by dividing the value of orders booked over the past three months by the value of sales billed during the same period from companies in IPC’s survey sample. A ratio of more than 1.0 suggests that current demand is ahead of supply, which is a positive indicator for sales growth over the next two to three months.

Rigid shipments were up 24.3% while bookings increased 22.1% from August 2009. Year to date, rigid PCB shipments are up 20.4% and bookings have grown 33.2%. Sequentially, rigid shipments increased 5.4% and bookings were up 1.5%. The book-to-bill ratio fell slightly to 1.08.

Flexible circuit shipments were up 35.7% and bookings were up 61.8% year-over-year, although sequentially shipments fell 7.6% while  bookings increased 12.9%. Year to date, flex circuit shipments have increased 9.2% and bookings 22.6%. The flex book-to-bill ratio dropped to 1.01.

Rigid PCBs make up an estimated 89% of the current PCB industry in North America, according to IPC. In August 83% of total PCB shipments reported were domestically produced. Flex circuit manufacturers indicated that bare circuits accounted for about 52% of the shipment values reported for the month. Assembly and other services make up a large and growing segment of flexible circuit producers’ businesses.

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