Indiana Gained More Than 5,000 Manufacturing Jobs Over Past Year

EVANSTON, Ill., May 21, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Industrial employment in Indiana increased by about one percent over the past twelve months, according to the 2012 Indiana Manufacturers Directory®, a manufacturers directory published annually by Manufacturers' News, Inc. (MNI) Evanston, IL. MNI reports Indiana gained 5,184 industrial jobs between March 2011 and March 2012.

Manufacturers' News reports Indiana is now home to 9,751 manufacturers employing 555,578 workers.

"Following several years of job losses, Indiana is finally seeing a renaissance in its manufacturing sector," says Tom Dubin, President of the Evanston, IL-based publishing company, which has been surveying industry since 1912. "The state's friendly business environment and solid infrastructure have been a draw for a variety of enterprises, particularly in the auto sector."

Bright spots for the state included Alcoa's plans to open a new aluminum plant near Lafayette; the expansion of spool-molder Mossberg Industries in Garrett; ConAgra's plans to expand its popcorn plant in Rensselaer; the expansion of Belstra Milling's animal feed plant in DeMotte; and the opening of Progress Rail's locomotive manufacturing plant in Muncie. In addition, Honda has added a second shift at its Greensburg facility; Toyota will expand production at its plant in Princeton; auto-supplier Flex N Gate is expanding its Covington factory; Subaru plans to expand production at its location in Lafayette; and Busche Enterprise will expand its factory in Albion.   

MNI reports Indiana's three largest industrial sectors by employment reported gains in jobs over the survey period. Transportation equipment manufacturing remains Indiana's largest industrial sector by employment with 83,869 jobs, up 2.3% over the year. Industrial machinery and equipment ranks second with 69,757 jobs, up 1.9%. Third-ranked fabricated metals account for 54,804 jobs, up a half percent over the past twelve months.

Other sectors that gained jobs over the past twelve months included furniture/fixtures, up 3.7%; primary metals, up 1.6%; food products, up 1.1%; rubber/plastics, up a half percent and electronics, also up a half percent. Losses were seen in lumber/wood, down 6.1%; stone/clay/glass, down 5.5%; textiles/apparel, down 3.3%; printing/publishing, down 2.8% and paper products, down 1%.

Industrial locations closing in Indiana included Med Tech Ambulance Corp.'s manufacturing plant in Goshen; Really Cool Foods' Cambridge City facility; Workhorse Custom Chassis' Union City plant; Printpack Inc.'s Greensburg factory; Dietrich Metal Framing's steel plant in Hammond; and Nidec Motor Corp.'s Frankfort plant.

The East Central region of Indiana accounts for the most industrial employment in the state with 146,318 jobs, down a half percent over the past twelve months. Northeast Indiana is home to 141,465 industrial workers, up 1%, while the Northwest region accounts for 89,477 jobs, down 1.3%.  Southwest Indiana saw manufacturing employment increase 5.8% and represents 70,831 of the state's jobs, while jobs increased a half percent in Southeast Indiana, with the region currently home to 56,593 industrial workers. West Central Indiana accounts for 50,894 manufacturing jobs, up 3.1%.

Indianapolis remains the state's top city by industrial employment with 74,655 manufacturing jobs, with no significant change reported over the year. Fort Wayne accounts for 25,186 jobs, virtually unchanged from a year ago. Elkhart saw jobs increase 1.7% and is currently home to 22,518 industrial workers, while Evansville accounts for 17,239 of the state's jobs, up 1.5%. Fifth-ranked Lafayette accounts for 14,274 jobs, up 3.2%. 

Detailed profiles of Indiana's 9,751 manufacturers and 1,277 distributors can be found in the 2012 Indiana Manufacturers Directory®, available in print for $146, or available online through MNI's subscription-based service at www.ezselect.com. Users may generate custom profiles of manufacturers using a variety of criteria, including area or zip code, county, SIC, sales volume, number of employees, and more. Each profile provides up to 30 facts, including vital contact information (phone, web, e-mail), 27,519 executives by name and title, product(s) manufactured, annual sales, and number of employees. MNI also maintains IndustryNet.com, an industrial search engine designed specifically for locating manufacturers and suppliers nationwide, and has recently launched an expansion and relocation guide for manufacturers.

Manufacturers' News, Inc. is the nation's oldest and largest publisher of state manufacturers directories.  For 100 years the company has identified, researched and profiled manufacturing establishments. MNI employs an 85-person editorial staff to scour yellow pages, trade journals, financial reports, and many other sources to pinpoint every manufacturing establishment in the U.S. Each manufacturer is contacted throughout the year to update their profiles, including their employee counts. For more information, contact Manufacturers' News, Inc., 1633 Central St., Evanston, IL, 60201, 847-864-7000, FAX 847-332-1100. www.manufacturersnews.com. Information is also available on Facebook and Twitter. 

SOURCE Manufacturers' News, Inc.