Houston ranks first among U.S. cities for number of manufacturing plants and related jobs, according to the 2009 Texas Manufacturers Register, an industrial guide published annually by Manufacturers’ News Inc. MNI reports industrial employment in Houston ranks above that of New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.
According to the register’s newest data, Houston is home to 3,957 manufacturers employing 221,697 workers, with employment unchanged over the past 12 months. Texas as a whole is home to 23,589 manufacturers employing 1,218,586 workers.
“Houston’s combination of low-cost living, favorable business climate, educated workforce and proximity to the oil industry have made it the choice of many manufacturers and other Fortune 500 companies,” says Tom Dubin, president of the Evanston, Ill.-based company which has been surveying industry since 1912.
MNI reports industrial machinery and equipment manufacturing is Houston’s top sector, accounting for 58,716 of the city’s manufacturing jobs or 27 percent with virtually no change in employment reported over the year survey year, which runs from April 2008 to April 2009. Oil & gas extraction ranks second with 30,584 jobs, up 7.8 percent over the year while third-ranked fabricated metals account for 28,903, down 5.4 percent.
Other sectors losing jobs in Houston include paper products, down 16 percent; rubber/miscellaneous plastics down 6.4 percent; textiles/apparel down 5.6 percent; stone/clay/glass down 2.6 percent and printing/publishing down 1.8 percent.
Sectors gaining jobs include electronics, up 6.5 percent and transportation equipment, up 13 percent. Employment remained unchanged in the food products, lumber/wood, furniture/fixtures, chemicals and primary metals sectors, according to MNI.
According to the industrial directory, Dallas ranks second in the state for industrial jobs, with 89,819 workers, and ranks 6th in the nation for industrial employment. Fort Worth is third with 67,283 jobs, while fourth-ranked San Antonio is home to 53,196. Austin accounts for 42,434 of Texas’ industrial jobs, according to MNI.
