Aluminum extrusion shipments rose in 2005

Aluminum extrusion shipments in the United States and Canada continued to rise in 2005, totaling an estimated 4.42 billion pounds, according to an annual set of numbers released jointly in June by the Aluminum Extruders Council in Wauconda, Ill., and the Aluminum Association Inc. in Arlington, Va. This is a 5.7 percent increase over the previous year’s 4.18 billion pounds. Building and construction accounted for the largest sector, with 1.83 billion pounds of aluminum extrusions shipped in 2005, or 41 percent of the domestic extrusions market. This is a 4.4 percent increase over the 1.75 billion pounds shipped in 2004. Doors and windows continue to dominate the category, accounting for nearly 45 percent of the segment’s total shipments, a 3.7 percent increase over the previous year.

“This year’s survey showed once again the amazing strength of building and construction and its importance to our entire industry,” says Rand A. Baldwin, AEC president. “Most folks figure that, sooner or later, rising interest rates will slow the residential and nonresidential building and construction markets. But that didn’t happen in 2005.”

Transportation was the second largest category, at an estimated 1.31 billion pounds, or 29.6 percent of the total aluminum extrusions market. Trucks, cars and buses accounted for more than 41 percent of that figure; trailers and semis came next at 32 percent.

Shipments by North American producers, including exports, totaled 4.2 billion pounds in 2005, a 4.7 percent rise over 2004 numbers. Imports grew by 22.3 percent to 358 million pounds.

The AEC-AA statistics are based on results culled from an industry survey of 59 companies representing 93 percent of the market, as well as estimates from the Aluminum Association’s Statistical and Market Research Committee. The annual survey was conducted by Business Research Services in Cleveland.