Guest editorial
By Sean Moran, 2019–2020 NTEA Board Data Committee Chairman
Sales & Marketing Manager, Stellar Industries Inc.
This article was published in the January 2020 edition of NTEA News.
Being an NTEA member comes with a series of benefits, including technical resources, government advocacy, workforce development, and events and training — to name a few. Market data is another significant aspect of Association membership. NTEA is a recognized leader in providing relevant, valuable industry statistics and interpretation of market data and trends influencing the work truck industry.
Members receive access to reports and analysis from NTEA and other industry sources; their participation in Association research initiatives is essential to ensuring high-quality, representative data. NTEA publishes monthly market updates (member login required), provided by Steve Latin-Kasper, the Association’s director of market data and research. Throughout a given year, Steve delivers presentations explaining industry trends and shares his insights on data indicators. Some of this data is drawn from public sources (such as U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Energy), while some comes from purchased services individual members may not be able to fit into the budget. This, combined with other NTEA-sourced data, provides an excellent basis for decision-making.
NTEA data is collected from the commercial vehicle community at large — members and nonmembers alike. Without strong participation in the data collection effort, information unique to our industry would be nonexistent. We’d be left to make decisions in the dark.
One benchmarking study NTEA conducts is Annual Manufacturers’ Shipments Survey (AMSS) — a critical information source that allows for industry size analysis, comparison between industry and public data, and review of correlations. This enables NTEA to develop data analytics that help members better understand the current health of our industry and deliver forecasts to support market planning. We can lean on directional guidance from the AMSS report to help assess business performance.
AMSS can help you
- Better approximate market size
- Learn how much the market grew (in terms of units/dollars)
- Determine whether or not your company kept pace
- Compare your business to the industry as a whole
However, without broad participation from NTEA manufacturer members, the value of AMSS is diminished, and all company types suffer from not having better data to help guide their business decision-making.
Recent editions of AMSS are available for purchase at ntea.com/shopntea. In addition to getting a complimentary copy, survey participants are able to see all industry data — not simply data for segments in which they report. In the next few weeks, manufacturer companies will be asked to get involved in the 2020 survey (covering 2019 data). I encourage you to participate — for your company’s direct benefit and the industry at large.
AMSS will be mailed to all NTEA manufacturer member companies in February. Learn more at ntea.com/amss or email stevelk@ntea.com.
