National Tooling & Machining Association
The NTMA is the national representative of the custom precision manufacturing industry in the United States.
Many NTMA members are small businesses, privately owned and operated, yet the industry generates sales in excess of $40 billion a year. Our over 1,800 members design and manufacture special tools, dies, jigs, fixtures, gages, special machines, and precision machined parts. Some firms specialize in experimental research and development work.
The tooling and machining industry is critical to our country's economic health as it makes possible the existence of virtually every other manufacturing industry. Tooling is, in its simplest sense, the means of production. "Special" tooling, such as dies and molds, is custom designed and made to manufacture specific products, generally in quantity, and to desired levels of uniformity, accuracy, interchangeability, and quality. Machining involves the use of a wide variety of machine tools to cut or form material, usually metal, to precise shapes and dimensions.
NTMA member companies use the full range of machine tools and related equipment, ranging from small automatic lathes for miniature parts, to enormous boring mills. The industry is probably the most technologically-advanced of all small manufacturing activities, and enjoys widespread deployment of computer-numerically-controlled (CNC) machines and other computer-aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM) techniques.
Our industry supplies the necessary precision tooling and machining for such vital industries as defense, automotive, aerospace, appliance, business machines, electronics, agricultural implements, ordnance, transportation, environmental, construction equipment, nuclear, and many more. In point of fact, nearly every manufacturer does business at one time or another with the contract tooling and machining industry.
Who We Are, How We Help
The tooling and machining industry is becoming more complex and increasingly more entwined with its suppliers, its customers and the global economy. What occurs in Europe, Asia or Washington impacts your firm and your livelihood on a variety of levels.
Knowledge is Crucial
The best way to excel and profit in this highly competitive environment is to become more knowledgeable about your business, your competition, the latest technology, marketing and government regulations.
The NTMA Has the Resources and
Vision to Help You Succeed.
Our mission is to be a center of knowledge for reliable, valuable information about the tooling & machining industry and all its components. We are positioned to be the industry source for knowledge and assistance with marketing, finance, technology, networking, education and government affairs. If it affects your business, NTMA has the answer….and we can help.
A Short History
The National Tooling & Machining Association has continuously operated since 1943 as a non-profit organization serving the tooling and machining industry. Our mission then was to ensure that the country had enough skilled machinists in America's factories to sustain the war effort and achieve victory in World War II.
Today, NTMA represents more than 1,800 tool, die, mold, precision machining and other precision custom manufacturing companies. We are made up of nearly 50 local chapters that operate independently while seeking guidance and using resources from our national offices located outside Washington, DC. NTMA also has four subsidiaries totaling $14 million in revenues, including a reinsurance company to serve its membership. In addition, NTMA serves as secretariat for the International Special Tooling and Machining Association to which 17 countries belong. This helps connect you to markets around the world.
Our focus now is on building and sustaining a viable, active and vital tooling and machining industry in North America. We assist member firms by serving as their liaison to the federal government, and by being their source of knowledge and assistance with everything from managing their business to assessing their competition to helping them incorporate the latest technology, and stay abreast of the latest trends.
How We Can Benefit Your Company
As a member of NTMA, we can help you improve everything from your management and business skills to your machining skills and everything else in your shop you want to move up a notch or two. Additionally, association membership gives you the opportunity and ability to exert pressure on the legislative process. On the national level, NTMA serves as a liaison to Congress and the federal agencies, lobbying aggressively in your behalf. On the local level, NTMA aggressively supports your chapter's efforts to affect the legislative process in your community.
Information and assistance is available through NTMA programs including:
Networking & Information Exchange
Business Management Assistance
Marketing Tools and Support
Industry Trends and Business Forecast Reports
Education & Training
Government Affairs
In addition, as a member you can also receive free labor law advice, technical advice, competitive insurance and more.
These are just a few of the reasons company owners have depended on NTMA for over half a century. In the years ahead, we will continue to build the industry by helping NTMA members become as prosperous as possible.
