A report on third-quarter 2001 industrial laser shipments shows that, at $105.2 million, the North American and US exports were down 37 percent from third-quarter 2000 levels. The statistics gathered by the Laser Systems Product Group of the Association for Manufacturing Technology indicate that shipments within North America totaled $71.2 million. CO₂ and Nd:YAG laser shipments declined 30 and 45 percent, respectively, from a year earlier. Cutting applications accounted for 45 percent of the shipments.

Half of the lasers delivered for the year were CO₂ lasers, and more than 80 percent were configured as systems. Statistics reflect the data supplied by 45 companies that participated in third-quarter surveys for both years.