Why This Matters to Distributors: The May sourcing data suggests demand remains healthy across industrial manufacturing, automation, and infrastructure-related markets. Strong growth in machining, fabrication, wire and cable, automation systems, pumps, valves, and industrial services points to continued investment by customers in production capacity, facility upgrades and supply chain resilience. For distributors, the data offers an early indication of where purchasing activity is gaining momentum heading into the second half of 2026.
Industrial buyers increased sourcing activity across manufacturing, automation, and industrial services categories in May, signaling continued investment in production capacity, infrastructure projects, and supply chain resiliency despite ongoing economic uncertainty.
According to Thomas’ May 2026 Sourcing Activity Report, buyers across manufacturing, procurement and maintenance organizations continued to pursue domestic suppliers and specialized service providers as they prepared for summer production schedules and sought to reduce supply chain risk. The report analyzes sourcing activity across more than 80,000 industrial product and service categories.
Hinges, chemicals, steel, packaging materials, valves, and pumps ranked among the most-sourced products on the Thomas platform during May. Electric wire and cable assemblies, temperature sensors, coatings, pipe and piping products and automation systems also generated significant sourcing activity.
Thomas reported that demand for steel was driven by infrastructure and heavy manufacturing projects as buyers worked to secure raw materials ahead of anticipated summer production peaks. The company said procurement teams increasingly turned to domestic suppliers and service centers to reduce exposure to international freight disruptions and longer lead times.
Tubing products also saw increased demand, fueled by sourcing activity from automotive, aerospace and HVAC manufacturers seeking precision-engineered materials to support production programs.
On the services side, machining ranked as the most-sourced category in May, followed by CNC machining, contract and private-label food manufacturing, design services, and metal fabrication services. Maintenance and repair services also ranked among the top 20 service categories.
CNC machining emerged as one of the strongest-performing segments. Thomas attributed the increase to demand from aerospace, defense and medical device manufacturers seeking specialized machining capabilities for new product launches and production programs. The report also cited ongoing efforts by buyers to strengthen domestic supply chains and reduce reliance on overseas suppliers.
Demand for building trade contractors also increased during the month. Thomas said sourcing activity was supported by seasonal construction activity, infrastructure spending, commercial development projects, and persistent labor shortages across specialized trades.
Among the fastest-growing categories, CNC machining posted the largest month-over-month increase, rising 115% in May. Building materials sourcing increased 56%, followed by trucks and carts at 36%, packaging services at 32%, architectural and wall panels at 31% and air and gas compressors at 30%. Pharmaceuticals, automation systems, controls and controllers and temperature sensors also recorded notable gains.
Year over year, cutting services led all categories with a 113% increase in sourcing activity. Machining rose 95%, plastic injection molding services increased 94%, fittings climbed 90% and stamping services grew 87%. Packaging services increased 57%, while electric wire, cable and cable assemblies rose 53%. Pumps, building trade contractors and valves each posted growth of at least 45%.
Automation-related demand remained a consistent theme throughout the report. Automation systems ranked among the top 20 products sourced in May and posted gains both month over month and year over year, reflecting continued investment in factory automation, productivity initiatives, and manufacturing modernization.
The report also identified pharmaceuticals, robots, cleaning equipment, lubricants, pallets, and copper among the fastest-emerging product categories, indicating growing activity across healthcare, logistics and industrial manufacturing sectors.
Thomas reported that its platform generates more than 1.5 million sourcing sessions per month and adds approximately 20,000 new registered users monthly. Manufacturing professionals account for 33% of platform users, while supply chain, procurement and logistics professionals represent 18%. MRO professionals account for 11% of users.
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