Advanced manufacturing is the development and production of high-tech, complex products. An economy based on advanced manufacturing holds the greatest potential to create sustainable, long-term economic growth; rebuild the American middle class; and solve the global environmental crisis.
Manufacturing builds economic sustainability
- Manufacturing sustains 406,700 jobs in the Chicago-Joliet-Naperville area, employs 10% of the Illinois workforce, and generates $1.6 trillion nationally each year. On its own, US manufacturing would be the 8th largest economy in the world.
- Growth in manufacturing spills over to other sectors, with every new manufacturing job creating three more jobs in other industries. Manufacturing accounts for half of all American exports.
Manufacturing builds social sustainability
- Manufacturing creates high-paying jobs with exciting career paths to strengthen our middle class. In 2009, the average US manufacturing worker earned $72,258 in pay and benefits, compared to $58,411 for non-manufacturing workers.
- Manufacturing creates the highest possible fusion of public and private interests, providing high-paying jobs to strengthen our middle class; generating concrete wealth for investors and owners; and driving U.S. competitiveness at the cutting edge of global innovation.
Manufacturing builds environmental sustainability
- Manufacturing is responsible for half of all research and development in the United States -- more than any other sector. Manufacturing drives innovation, keeping the US competitive in the global knowledge economy.
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- Lasting solutions to the global environmental crisis can only emerge from advanced manufacturing. Regulation and litigation are not enough. We must create new products, processes, and technologies to restore and maintain our planet.
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Sources: CNN, National Association of Manufacturers, US Bureau of Labor Statistics, US Department of Commerce
