New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a name occasionally bantered about as a future VP or Presidential candidate for the Democrats, has been pushing her “Made in America Manufacturing Act” piece of legislation, which would center around competitive low interest loans for manufacturers looking to expand their facilities or build new ones, with a focus on high-tech and clean-tech industries. The bill would also make funds available for job training programs to help manufacturers in need of high-skilled workers, according to the Auburn Citizen. The Act would give grants of as much as $20 million to regional manufacturing hubs.
Regionally, there are certainly bright spots. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported on a TEAM NEO report that indicates that by the year 2020, the value of goods made, stamped, soldered or assembled in Northeast Ohio will have increased by nearly 40%, outpacing the national growth rate. Leading the charge? The region’s newer industries, such as chemicals and polymers—and not the historic heavy industries like steel.
In North Carolina, The Pilot reports that in spite of some recent area layoffs, the state’s manufacturing employment continues to grow ever since the numbers showed a net gain (for the first time in 16 years) in 2011. Keys in the state appear to include a turn toward lean manufacturing, an increase in high-tech industries, innovation, and global outsourcing.
The Atlanta Business Chronicle says that manufacturing in Georgia is on the upswing, as well, rising in January for the first time in months. This was due to sharp increases for new orders and production.
And lastly, New York state is seeing its manufacturing economy expanding for the first time in seven months, the New York Federal Reserve stated. Fox Business News reported that the “Empire State” general business conditions index rose to 10.0 from -7.8 the previous month. This blew away the economists’ forecast of -2.0. February’s index showed the first growth in the sector since July and the best performance since last May.
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