2010 trailer orders remain healthy

COLUMBUS, Ind. — Continuing a robust rebound from what was one of the worst years in the commercial trailer industry, August trailer net orders were up 55 percent from the same month in 2009.

According to ACT Research‘s latest State of the Industry: U.S. Trailers report, eight of the nine trailer categories tracked by ACT posted year-over-year growth.

Though, dump truck trailers, which primarily support the struggling construction and home-building sector, declined by 2 percent compared to August of last year.

AS well, net orders of 10,946 in August were 2 percent above July levels. Trailer manufacturers increased the per-day build rate by 6 percent, which caused the backlog of orders to decline for the first time in eight months.

However, this is a typical seasonal pattern that has occurred in twelve of the last 13 years, says ACT.

"With more freight to haul and continued tight freight hauling capacity, trucker profits are rising and should provide the wherewithal to increase the pace of replacing older equipment," said Kenny Vieth, partner and senior analyst with ACT Research.

"Trailer manufacturers are well positioned to serve this need as the backlog-to build ratio now stands at four months and is expected to gradually rise as the seasonally strong order months of October through March approach," added Vieth.