Directory Reports Colorado Industrial Jobs Increased 1.2% Over Past Year

EVANSTON, Ill., July 31, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Industrial employment in Colorado increased 1.2% over the past twelve months according to the 2013 Colorado Manufacturers Directory, an industrial directory published annually by Manufacturers' News, Inc. (MNI) Evanston, IL. MNI reports Colorado gained 2,546 industrial jobs between May 2011 and May 2012.

Manufacturers' News reports Colorado is home to 6,553 manufacturers employing 205,627 workers.

"Colorado continues to see its manufacturing sector improve," says Tom Dubin, President of the Evanston, IL-based publishing company, which has been surveying industry since 1912. "The state's business-friendly environment as well as its access to capital and abundant natural resources has been a draw for a variety of enterprises."

Bright spots for the state included GE Electric's decision to locate its new solar panel plant in Aurora; the opening of Brown Industries LLC's new assembly plant in Henderson; the expansion of Sundyne Corp.'s location in Arvada; and the expansion of Eastman Kodak's plant in Windsor. 

MNI reports electronics manufacturing remains the state's largest industrial sector with 24,003 manufacturing jobs, virtually unchanged from a year ago. Second-ranked food products accounts for 23,565 manufacturing jobs, up 1% over the past twelve months. Industrial machinery and equipment employs 19,508 of Colorado's industrial workers, up 1.5% over last year.

Other sectors that gained jobs over the year included oil and gas extraction, up 10.4%; chemicals, up 5.7%; and rubber/plastics, up 1.8%. Employment losses were seen in printing/publishing, down 9%; paper products, down 7.2%; furniture/fixtures, down 6.1%; lumber/wood, down 5.8%, and textiles/apparel down 5.2%.

Industrial locations closing down included Butterball's turkey processing plant in Longmont and Eldorado Stone's plant in Pueblo. 

Manufacturers' News reports Northeast Colorado accounts for 132,334 of the state's industrial jobs, up 1.3% over the year. Northwest Colorado accounts for 59,528, up a half percent over the survey period. The Southwest region is home to 7,223 industrial jobs, with no significant change reported, while the Southeast is home to 6,542, up the most at 6.3%.

MNI's city data shows Denver is the state's top city for manufacturing employment, home to 40,069 jobs, down 1.1% over the past year. Second-ranked Colorado Springs accounts for 17,762 jobs, down 4.3% over the past twelve months. Englewood is home to 13,572 industrial jobs, with no significant change reported, while Boulder accounts for 11,306 jobs, up 2.6%. Fifth-ranked Littleton is home to 9,489 industrial jobs, up 2.1% over the survey period.

Detailed profiles of Colorado's 6,553 manufacturers and 1,176 distributors can be found in the 2013 Colorado Manufacturers Directory, available in print for $119, or available online through MNI's subscription-based service at www.ezselect.com. Users may generate custom profiles of manufacturers using a variety of criteria, including area or zip code, county, SIC, sales volume, number of employees, and more. Each profile provides up to 30 facts, including vital contact information (phone, web, e-mail), 21,375 executives by name and title, product(s) manufactured, annual sales, and number of employees. MNI also maintains IndustryNet.com, an industrial search engine designed specifically for locating manufacturers and suppliers nationwide, and has recently launched an expansion and relocation guide for manufacturers.

Manufacturers' News, Inc. is the nation's oldest and largest publisher of state manufacturers directories.  For 100 years the company has identified, researched and profiled manufacturing establishments. MNI employs an 85-person editorial staff to scour state business registrations, trade journals, financial reports, and many other sources to pinpoint every manufacturing establishment in the U.S. Each manufacturer is contacted throughout the year to update their profiles, including their employee counts. For more information, contact Manufacturers' News, Inc., 1633 Central St., Evanston, IL, 60201, 847-864-7000, FAX 847-332-1100. www.manufacturersnews.com. Information is also available on Facebook and Twitter.    

SOURCE Manufacturers' News, Inc.