Colorado Industrial Employment Declines Nearly 4% According To Manufacturers Directory

Contact: Jennifer Ratcliff
Manufacturers’ News, Inc.
(847) 864-9440 ext. 241
jratcliff [at] manufacturersnews.com



EVANSTON, Ill, July 28, 2009 /Manufacturers’ News, Inc./-- Industrial employment in Colorado fell 3.8% over the past twelve months according to the 2010 Colorado Manufacturers Directory, an industrial directory published annually by Manufacturers’ News, Inc. (MNI) Evanston, IL. MNI reports Colorado lost 7,958 industrial jobs and 230 manufacturers between May 2008 and May 2009, the sharpest decline MNI has ever reported in the nine years it has been tracking the state’s industry.

Manufacturers’ News reports Colorado is home to 6,933 manufacturers employing 203,386 workers.

“As with the entire nation, the recession continues to hit many of Colorado’s core sectors, while the faltering housing market has affected industries such as wood products, furniture and building products,” says Tom Dubin, President of the Evanston, IL-based publishing company, which has been surveying industry since 1912.

Employment in the lumber and wood sector saw the worst drop in employment, down 16.1% in 2008, and the furniture/fixtures sector saw an 11.6% decline.

MNI reports employment in electronics manufacturing was down 10.7% over the year, following layoffs at semiconductor manufacturer Atmel Corp. and solar component maker Advanced Energy Co. The electronics sector is currently the state’s top sector by industrial employment, accounting for 21,326 jobs. Food products ranks second in the state with 21,022 jobs, down 4.7% over the year, partially due to layoffs at Longmont’s Butterball plant. Third-ranked printing and publishing represents 20,323 of the state’s jobs, down 6% over the year.

Bright spots for the state include the opening of solar module manufacturer Ascent Solar in Thornton and the planned opening of two new Vestas plants, which will produce blades and components for wind turbines. This is in addition to the opening of another Vestas plant last year in Windsor.

Other sectors that lost jobs over the year include chemicals, down 13%; paper products down 7.9%; primary metals down 5.2%; transportation equipment down 4.9%; industrial machinery and equipment down 1.6% and fabricated metals down 1.2%.

Employment remained steady in the textiles/apparel sectors and in the rubber/plastic sector, according to MNI.

Manufacturers’ News reports Northeast Colorado saw the largest decline in manufacturing employment, down 4.8%, and currently accounts for 64% of the state’s industrial employment or 130,359 jobs. Industrial employment declined 4.5% in Southwest Colorado, with the region currently home to 7,328 manufacturing jobs. The Southeast region of the state lost 2.5% of its manufacturing jobs, and is currently home to 6,005 industrial workers, while Northwest Colorado lost the fewest jobs, down 1.4%, and is currently home to 59,694.

MNI’s city data shows Denver is the state’s top city for manufacturing employment, home to 42,568 jobs, with jobs down 3,826 or 8.2% over the year. Second-ranked Colorado Springs accounts for 19,167 jobs, with employment down 7.7% or 1,610 over the past twelve months. Englewood is home to 14,543 industrial jobs, down 2.4% over the year. Boulder accounts for 9,734 jobs, with no significant change reported over the year, while Littleton is home to 9,624, down 1.5% over the past twelve months.

Detailed profiles of Colorado’s 6,933 manufacturers and 1,198 industrial distributors can be found in the 2010 Colorado Manufacturers Directory, available in print for $112 and on CD-ROM from $237. Each profile provides up to 30 facts, including vital contact information (phone, web, e-mail), 20,810 executives by name and title, product(s) manufactured, annual sales, number of employees, and more. Visitors to mnileads.com may generate custom profiles of manufacturers using thirteen different criteria, including area or zip code, county, SIC, sales volume, number of employees, and more.

Manufacturers’ News, Inc., publisher of manufacturers’ directories since 1912, compiles and produces manufacturing guides, statistics and databases for all 50 states. MNI also maintains IndustryNet.com, an industrial search engine designed specifically for locating manufacturers and suppliers nationwide. For more information, contact Manufacturers’ News, Inc., 1633 Central St., Evanston, IL, 60201, 847-864-7000, FAX 847-332-1100.