Manufacturing
Where Technology Meets Practicality
Manufacturing plants and factories need more than just people who work on a production line. From office support staff to mechanics, and designers to fabricators, today’s jobs in manufacturing include roles you may not have thought of while job hunting.
From small, family-owned shops to large corporations, there are hundreds of jobs and work environments in manufacturing. Manufacturing career options include jobs in assembly, fabrication, production, engineering, maintenance, logistics, management, administration, metalworking, tool and die making, painting, operations, quality control, processing and more.
100,992
People Employed
3,902
Businesses
1,555
*New Jobs by 2025
*Represents new jobs from sector growth as well as replacement openings due to retirements by 2025.
Manufacturing: Where technology meets practicality and opportunity
Even if you have zero interest in working on an assembly line, there are many different reasons that could make manufacturing your perfect career fit.
Variety and Diversity
With local manufacturers making everything from airplane parts to organic soup, you can choose not only your environment but also the types products that you’d help create.
Training & Education
Cutting edge technology is important in manufacturing, so on the job training and employer support of outside training is typical.
Opportunity
“Promotion” is Manufacturing’s middle name. Many employers like to get workers in on the ground level and train them into management positions in short amounts of time.
Make a Difference
From medical equipment that literally saves lives to specialty food items and critical transportation equipment, manufacturing makes a difference in your community and your day-to-day life.
Who Shines in Manufacturing?
Manufacturing employers are looking for people who are creative and curious and who might not have loved school, but who did love taking apart their parent’s radio or even helping fix the family car or tractor as a kid.
Maybe they didn’t have the right tools for the job, but in the end they always managed to rig something together, alone or with a team, to get it done. When a manufacturing employer finds workers like that, they help teach additional skills in-house.
Knowledge
- English Language
- Machines & Tools
- Mathematics
- Computers & Electronics
- Engineering & Technology
- Production & Processing
Abilities
- Communication Skills
- Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Deductive Reasoning
- Near Vision
- Problem Sensitivity
- Writing
Skills
- Operation Monitoring
- Critical Thinking
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Learning
- Quality Control Analysis
- Complex Problem Solving
Explore the Variety of Jobs in Manufacturing
There are many different types of positions, at all levels, in a wide variety of settings that people don’t often think about when thinking of manufacturing jobs.
Maintenance, Installation, & Repair
People with these jobs install and repair machinery, electronics, and other industrial equipment.
Production
People with these jobs operate manufacturing equipment to make materials and assemble products.
Quality Assurance, Inspection, & Testing
People with these jobs conduct tests and inspections to determine quality and safety.
Interested?
The resources below will help you decide if a career in construction is right for you.
What’s Made Here?
Use our interactive product maps to learn more about local companies, what they make, and how to join the team!
Info Sheet
Download an info sheet with career pathways information, top occupations by education, and a sampling of local employers.
Free E-Learning Course
To see if you would be a good fit for a career in healthcare, take this guided overview
e-learning course.
Get a look at a day in the life of some construction employees
For more videos, check out the Day At Work videos on connectED
or the video library at Career One Stop.