Industrial Directory Reports Missouri Manufacturing Jobs Fell 5.6%

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


EVANSTON, Ill, September 1st, 2009 /Manufacturers’ News, Inc./-- Industrial employment in Missouri fell 5.6% over the past twelve months according to the 2010 Missouri Manufacturers Register®, an industrial directory published annually by Manufacturers’ News, Inc. (MNI) Evanston, IL. MNI reports Missouri lost 22,647 industrial jobs and 467 manufacturers between July 2008 and July 2009, the sharpest decline MNI has ever reported in the twenty-one years it has been tracking the state’s industry.

Manufacturers’ News reports Missouri is now home to 8,650 manufacturers employing 383,488 workers.

“As with the entire nation, the recession continues to affect Missouri’s industrial sectors, with the auto industry and sectors related to the housing market taking the biggest hit,” says Tom Dubin, President of the Evanston, IL-based publishing company, which has been surveying industry since 1912.

Transportation equipment manufacturing saw the worst drop in employment, down 14% over the past twelve months due partially to the closures of Chrysler’s Fenton plant and Lear Corp’s Liberty plant, as well as layoffs at GM’s Wentzville facility. As a result, food products manufacturing has surpassed transportation equipment as the state’s leading industrial sector with 52,044 jobs, down 3.6% over the year. Transportation equipment now accounts for 47,700 jobs, according to MNI. The state’s third-largest manufacturing sector, industrial machinery and equipment, saw employment drop 4.2%, and currently accounts for 43,712 jobs.

All other industrial sectors in Missouri lost jobs within the past year and included electronics manufacturing, down 11.7%; furniture/fixtures down 11.5%; primary metals down 8.9%; lumber/wood down 4.4%; rubber/plastics down 4.4%; fabricated metals down 4.1%; textiles/apparel down 2.5%; and printing/publishing down 2.3%.

Bright spots for the state include the planned expansion of pork processor Triumph Foods in St. Joseph and the future opening of Smith Electric Vehicles’ electric vehicle plant, supported by a grant from the US Department of Energy. In addition, Ford Motor Co. ramped up production over the summer of small, fuel-efficient cars at its Kansas City Assembly plant in response to the federal Cash for Clunkers program.

Manufacturers’ News reports East Central Missouri saw the largest drop in employment, down 7.5% over the year with the region currently accounting for 160,427 jobs or 42% of the state. Manufacturing employment declined 6.4% in Southeast Missouri, with the region currently home to 23,026 jobs. Northeast and Southwest Missouri each suffered a 5.3% drop in manufacturing employment with the Northeast currently home to 28,997 jobs and the Southwest home to 54,971. Northwest Missouri saw a 4.6% decline, and accounts for 96,571 of the state’s industrial jobs.

South Central Missouri was the only region to see an employment increase, up 3.2% over the year. That region is currently home to 18,746 manufacturing jobs.

MNI’s city data shows St. Louis is Missouri’s top city for manufacturing employment, home to 84,523 jobs, with jobs down 6.5% over the year. Second-ranked Kansas City accounts for 42,344 jobs, with employment down 2.6%. Springfield is home to 16,896 industrial jobs, down 5.5% over the year, while St. Joseph accounts for 9,903 jobs, down 1.9%. Joplin is home to 8,035, down 6.7% over the past twelve months.

Detailed profiles of Missouri’s 8,650 manufacturers and 1,449 industrial distributors can be found in the 2010 Missouri Manufacturers Register®, available in print for $133 and on CD-ROM from $206. Each profile provides up to 30 facts, including vital contact information (phone, web, e-mail), 30,181 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.