May PWB Book-to-Bill Rises to 0.66

Electronic News, July 9, 2001 by Bernard Levine

THE U.S. PRINTED WIRING BOARD INDUSTRY BOOK-to-bill ratio improved slightly in May but is still way below parity. May's ratio was 0.66, up from 0.63 in April. The IPC--Association Connecting Electronics Industries, Northbrook, Ill., said sales billed (shipments) in May 2001 decreased 20.6 percent over May 2000 and orders booked decreased 53.4 percent over May 2000. Compared to 2000, bookings of PWBs are down 47.5 percent year-to-date, while shipments of PWBs are down 10.5 percent year-to-date.

The ratio is calculated by averaging the number of orders booked over the past three months and dividing by the average sales billed during the same period. The information is based on data provided by the 86 rigid and flexible PWB manufacturers participating in IPC's monthly statistical program, representing more than 40 percent of the U.S. domestic printed wiring board market.