Summary

It’s a tough, changing world for small manufacturers, and they expect more from a business incubator than access to forklifts and loading docks. This article helps you help them navigate the competitive business environment by highlighting successful programs and top Web resources for manufacturing firms.

The changing face of manufacturing

by Linda Knopp

June 2008

The death of the U.S. manufacturing industry has been greatly exaggerated, according to statistics from industry groups and comments from incubator managers who work with small manufacturers. The truth is that the manufacturing industry continues to thrive – but it is changing.

The same is true for manufacturing incubators. Since the 1990s, the percentage of North American incubators that work primarily with manufacturing clients has dropped from about 13 percent to 3 percent as a result of the overall restructuring of the U.S. economy. Still, many mixed-use incubation programs count small manufacturers among their clients.

By itself, the U.S. manufacturing industry would be the eighth largest economy in the world, according to The Facts About Modern Manufacturing, a 2006 report published by the National Association of Manufacturers. Between 1987 and 2005, manufacturing productivity in the United States grew at more than double the rate of productivity in other sectors. The report also revealed that every $1 in manufactured goods produced in the United States generates an extra $1.37 in economic activity.

But gone are the days when manufacturing was synonymous with assembly lines in large plants. Today, much of the manufacturing process is automated, with skilled machinists running high-tech equipment. And many of the manufacturing firms – especially those housed in business incubators – work in specialized markets. Read on to learn several ways incubation programs are assisting manufacturers.

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Keywords: development, manufacturing/production, market research -- client, marketing/sales, strategic partnerships

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