According to a new survey, a total of 41 per cent of the companies surveyed said that they have recorded an increase in orders during the quarter.

During the quarter, about 29 per cent of the companies said their orders fell and 21 per cent said that their orders remained at the same level.  The recent review showed that Scotland's engineering sector remained strong during the quarter, boosting its performance for the entire year. Scottish Engineering said that the high level of orders has boosted the sector in the quarter.

The report showed that the figure was lower than the previous quarter but remained at a healthy level. The survey also showed that 37 per cent said they had increased staffing during the quarter while 27 per cent said their staffing levels fell during the quarter. As for overall output volumes, 37 per cents said that their output rose while 25 per cent said that they had recorded a fall in output.

Bryan Buchan, chief executive of Scottish Engineering, said, "While we continue to see improvements on the whole, there are still areas where our member companies are finding that trading conditions are tough. Fabricators and metal manufacturers in particular are seeing order levels drop. One area where I am very encouraged is in the collaborative efforts of the universities and colleges with industry."