Oct 28, 2022 3 min read

As October draws to a close, we also near the end of Manufacturing Month – a time for all of us to celebrate the makers of things big and small, from the electricity that powers your home to the medication that keeps you healthy to the vehicle that gets you to wherever you need to be.

This month, we recognize the importance of manufacturing to our communities and our country and to inspire the next generation of workers to explore career opportunities within today’s modern manufacturers.

Manufacturing is the economic engine of Pennsylvania, fueling growth and prosperity across the commonwealth, within urban and rural communities and for workers and their families.

Manufacturing provides family-sustaining jobs for more than a half-million Pennsylvanians – making it our third largest employer. And manufacturing is Pennsylvania’s greatest economic sector in terms of statewide economic output – with more than $110 billion annually.

But manufacturing isn’t easy. The size and strength of the sector does not insulate it from external challenges.

By some measures, Pennsylvania’s manufacturing sector is losing ground to other states. To reclaim our rightful place as the nation’s powerhouse for making, building and innovating, Pennsylvania manufacturers need support. They need strong, decisive statewide leadership to successfully compete in an increasingly competitive global economy.

Pennsylvania manufacturers need help in transitioning to high-growth, high-tech opportunities in life sciences, energy, aerospace, electric vehicle and other emerging markets. They need guides to facilitate connections with other in-state manufacturers to create Pennsylvania-based supply chains and break their dependencies upon overseas suppliers. They need more opportunities to partner with other manufacturers and must have quicker and easier access to state incentives for locating and growing their businesses here.

Manufacturers see the need to invest in their people to build the workforce of tomorrow and are eager to pair their highly skilled workforce with cutting-edge technologies to create the next-generation facilities of the future. But they need resources to help them achieve that goal.

Thanks to the Pennsylvania Manufacturing Advisory Council, state leaders have a playbook for winning the future of manufacturing. “Pennsylvania’s Manufacturing Competitiveness Playbook” lays out the issues manufacturers face and offers game-changing recommendations. To read the Playbook, visit www.pamanufacturingcouncil.com/playbook.

Once the recommendations proposed within the Playbook are implemented, Pennsylvania will once again be America’s manufacturing beacon and will be recognized for our industrial might not only in October but throughout the year – and every year for generations to come.

Ray Yeager

President, CEO, DMI Companies, Monongahela