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Top 10 States for Manufacturing Jobs

In January the Census Bureau released manufacturing statistics from its 2012 Economic Census at the state, metro area and county levels, as well as for cities and towns, for more than 350 manufacturing industries. The data cover more than 296,000 U.S. manufacturing establishments within every state and their localities. This release strictly looks at the number of manufacturing jobs and companies. Below is the Top Ten list of states, with a brief detail of figures:

1. California - employed 1.2 million at 38,741 companies. The average annual payroll per employee for California manufacturing establishments rose 21.1%, from $49,187 in 2007 to $59,584 in 2012, while the value of shipments from the state’s manufacturing establishments increased 4.3%, from $491.4 billion in 2007 to $512.3 billion in 2012.
2. Texas - employed 767,024 in 19,782 companies. From 2011-2012 employment was up 2.5%, exports were up 8% and GDP was up 9.1%. In 2013 manufacturing made up 15% of the state's GDP Exports were valued at $250.4 in 2013.
3. Ohio - employed 627,124 at 14,482 companies. Manufacturing employment grew 9.4% between 2010-2012. Ohio’s gross state product was $87.2 billion in 2012.
4. Pennsylvania - employed 543,642 at 13,988 companies. The state has the 7th largest manufacturing GDP in the country. It is home to more than 1,200 life science companies.
5. Illinois - employed 542,004 at 13,868 companies. Manufacturing comprises approximately 13% of the state’s GDP. It has the third largest manufacturing output nationally. The state is the second largest producer of plastics and rubber products, machinery as well as printing and related support equipment manufacturing output in the nation.
6. Michigan - employed 514,058 at 12, 444 companies. Michigan has more engineers per capita than any other state. Michigan's high-tech workforce is the 4th largest in the country with: 65,000 engineers, 70,000 R&D professionals and 181,000 skilled tradespeople.
7. Indiana - employed 452, 513 at 8,141 companies. Last year, Indiana saw significant aerospace announcements from BAE Systems, GE Aviation, Alcoa all of which announced either major expansions or new facilities.
8. Wisconsin - employed 436,777 at 8,995 companies. The state has partnered with manufacturers and the University of Wisconsin System to create more than 100 programs geared toward maximizing the state’s manufacturing capabilities. The economic impact of these centers of excellence is $15 billion per year.
9. New York - employed 426,621 at 16, 475 companies. New York is trying to add to its workforce through its 2013 START-UP NY program which helps companies locate or expand in a tax-free zone in the state. So far 73 businesses have created more than 2,400 jobs.
10. North Carolina - employs 403,593 at 7,997 companies. The state features two of the top 10 aerospace and aviation cluster markets in the South. More than 180 aerospace companies employ 9,500.         

Agracel is represented in seven of these top ten states with manufacturing projects. We look forward to continuing to add manufacturing jobs throughout the country in 2015!

Jack Schultz is the CEO of Agracel Inc., an industrial development firm majoring in rural America, and author of Boomtown USA - The 7 1/2 Keys to Big Success in Small Towns.

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