Some Interesting Facts about the Florida Manufacturing Industry

• There are more than 16,500 manufacturing businesses in Florida.
  
  
• About 400,000 people in Florida are employed by manufacturers.
  
  
• The average annual salary for a Florida manufacturing employee is $43,419, about 18 percent higher than the state average for all industries.
  
  
• In regional, statewide and national surveys, manufacturers consistently cite a lack of qualified workers as a chief concern and business setback. In the National Association of Manufacturers’ 2005 Skills Gap Report, 90 percent of the companies participating in the survey said they are experiencing “a moderate to severe shortage of qualified skilled production employees.”
  
  
• In Florida, small businesses dominate the industry with about 72 percent of manufacturers employing fewer than 10 people each. Five percent of companies employ at least 100 workers.
  
  
• Florida ranks No. 13 in the nation in manufacturing jobs. California, Texas and Ohio top the list respectively.
  
  
• Florida’s manufacturing gross state product in 2004 was $31 billion, which represents 2.2 percent of manufacturing in the U.S.
  
  
• The top five Florida counties based on the number of manufacturing businesses are: Miami-Dade (2,654), Broward (1,836), Pinellas, (1,248), Palm Beach (1,116), and Hillsborough (1,034).
  
  
• The five Florida counties with the most manufacturing employees are: Miami-Dade (48,676); Pinellas (37,981), Hillsborough (31,740); Broward (31,352); and Orange (30,258).
  
  
• In 2005, the top four manufacturing sectors in Florida ranked by monthly employment were: computer and electronic products (51,064); transportation equipment (42,115); fabricated metal products (39,739); and food (31,691).
  
  
Sources: Agency for Workforce Innovation, Enterprise Florida, Inc., FLATE Center for Manufacturing Education, Manufacturing Association of Florida, Manufacturing Skill Standards Council, National Association of Manufacturers, Workforce Florida, Inc.