U.S. manufacturing remained in expansion territory in August 2026, but new orders and backlogs lost momentum. For maintenance and purchasing teams, however, the bigger signal may be what did not improve: supplier deliveries slowed further, raw-material prices remained elevated, and key industrial inputs continued to be reported in short supply. Quick Take Source: Institute for Supply … Read more
Domtar estimates that its Kingsport mill avoided 1,546.65 hours of unplanned downtime after changing how people—not just algorithms—handled condition-monitoring data. The number is not independently audited, but the workflow behind it offers a useful lesson for plants investing in AI-assisted maintenance. Quick Take Early in Matthew McLaughlin’s tenure as a reliability engineer at Domtar’s Kingsport, … Read more
A series of industrial earnings reports released over the past several weeks—and capped by Parker Hannifin’s results on August 6—suggests that a potentially important shift is occurring inside the industrial equipment market. Demand is not strengthening only on the new-equipment side. Replacement parts, aftermarket services and MRO purchasing are strengthening at the same time. Parker … Read more
U.S. manufacturing activity accelerated sharply in July, but the same data that point to stronger production also expose a more difficult operating environment for maintenance, reliability and MRO teams. The Institute for Supply Management’s July 2026 Manufacturing PMI report, released August 3, placed the headline index at 55.6 percent—2.3 percentage points above June and its … Read more
Annual summer shutdowns are underway at manufacturers in several regions. MPM Group scheduled its 2026 shutdown to begin during the week of Monday, August 3. Gledring closed its production facility from July 27 through August 14 for its annual summer shutdown and scheduled maintenance. IINO Manufacturing and Suzumo Machinery announced factory closures from August 8 … Read more