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About the Annual Survey of Manufactures

Overview

The Annual Survey of Manufactures (ASM) provided sample estimates of statistics for all manufacturing establishments with one or more paid employees.

  • Was conducted annually, except for years ending in 2 and 7, at which time ASM statistics were included in the manufacturing sector of the Economic Census.
  • The economic census manufacturing sector was the universe from which the ASM sample frame was selected and provided more detailed statistics.
  • Provided statistics on employment, payroll, supplemental labor costs, cost of materials consumed, operating expenses, value of shipments, value added by manufacturing, detailed capital expenditures, fuels and electric energy used, and inventories.

Purpose

To provide key intercensal measures of manufacturing activity, products, and location for public and private sector use. The ASM provided the best measure of U.S. manufacturing industry outputs, inputs, and operating status, and was the primary basis for updates of the Longitudinal Research Database (LRD). Census Bureau staff and academic researchers with sworn agent status use the LRD for micro data analysis.

Coverage

Manufacturing establishments with one or more paid employees or nonemployers that use leased employees for manufacturing are classified in NAICS sector 31-33.

Content

The ASM provided statistics on employment, payroll, worker hours, payroll supplements, cost of materials, selected operating expenses, value added by manufacturing, capital expenditures, inventories, and energy consumption. It also provided estimates of value of shipments for approximately 3,500 products manufactured, as defined by the North America Product Classification System (NAPCS).

Frequency

The ASM was conducted annually, except for years ending in 2 and 7, at which time ASM data were included in the manufacturing sector of the Economic Census.

Methods

The ASM was a sample survey of approximately 50,000 establishments. The latest sample, in 2019, was selected using a sample frame based on information from the Manufacturing portion of the 2017 Economic Census. The initial 2019 sample was supplemented with records for new manufacturing establishments that were not included in the 2017 Economic Census but were identified on the Census Bureau's Business Register for the 2018 processing year. The ASM sample was updated annually from two sources that are input to the Business Register; administrative records from the Internal Revenue Service were used to identify new single-establishment manufacturers, and the Company Organization Survey was used to identify new manufacturing establishments of multi-establishment companies.

Products

Data are available on the internet. The principal publications are:

  • Statistics for Industry Groups and Industries: displays U.S. statistics at the 2-through 6-digit NAICS code levels.
  • Geographic Area Statistics: Statistics for All Manufacturing: displays data for the U.S. and States at the 2-through 4-digit NAICS code levels.
  • Geographic Area Statistics: Supplemental Statistics: displays data for the U.S. and States at the 2-digit NAICS code level.
  • Industry-Product Analysis: displays U.S. data at the 2-through 6-digit NAICS code levels for Products as currently defined in the NAPCS structure.
  • Method of Inventory Valuation Statistics: displays U.S. data at the 2-through 6-digit NAICS code levels.
  • E-Commerce Statistics: displays U.S. data at the 2-through 3-digit NAICS code levels.

Targeted release dates were 12 months from the end of the reference period.

Users

Bureau of Economic Analysis uses ASM data to prepare annual updates of the GNP and GNP weight deflators, the annual input-output (I/O) tables, and to the private inventories, producer’s equipment and software components (PES) of the gross domestic product (GDP).

Bureau of Labor Statistics uses ASM data to calculate annual productivity series, updating producer price indexes, and calculate weights when new components are added.

Federal Reserve Board uses ASM data to prepare the Index of Industrial Production.

The Census Bureau benchmarks current data on manufacturing shipments and inventories.

State and local agencies use ASM data for economic policymaking and forecasting.

The Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration uses the data to evaluate and forecast industrial activity.

Private industry and trade associations use the data to plan operations, analyze markets, and make investment and production decisions.

The Census Bureau uses the data to update the Longitudinal Research database, which is used by Census Bureau staff and academic researchers with sworn agent status for micro data analysis.

Page Last Revised - November 2, 2023
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