NEMA's Primary Industrial Controls Index climbed 11.7 percent on a quarter-to-quarter basis during the first three months of 2010.The index has grown in each of the last three quarters.

Industrial control shipments also increased on a year-over-year basis for the first time since the third quarter of 2008, posting an increase of 11 percent compared to the first quarter of 2009. Inflation- and seasonally-adjusted shipments remain almost 23 percent below their cyclical peak. The Primary Industrial Controls and Adjustable Speed Drives Index, a broader measure of demand for the industrial controls market, recorded a 13.9 percent quarter-to-quarter increase during the first quarter of 2010, and it posted a 13 percent year-over-year increase, which is the largest increase in four years.