Manufacturing is critical to U.S. economic growth, but projecting what kind of growth we will actually see is difficult. With forecasts ranging from as few as 100,000 new jobs over 10 years to as many as 3.8 million, the real question is where that growth will occur—and at what pace.
Because states publish projections independently, researchers at ETQ pulled data from 49 individual state agencies to create a proprietary manufacturing job growth dataset, then generated the most recent 10-year projection for each state.
Here are the key findings for South Carolina at a glance:
- Manufacturing employment is projected to grow by 8.5% in South Carolina between 2022 and 2032, the 10th largest increase in the nation.
- This translates to a total gain of 22,071 manufacturing jobs over that span, the 7th most of any state.
- On a national level, growth is projected to be concentrated more in the South and Mountain West rather than the traditional industrial Northeast or Midwest.
- Even in optimistic projections, many new manufacturing roles may go unfilled due to persistent talent shortages nationwide.
States Where Manufacturing Jobs Are Projected to Grow the Most
| 1 | Utah | +16.6% | +25,180 | 151,610 | 176,790 | +23.1% | +404,420 | 1,748,840 | 2,153,260 | 2022–2032 |
| 2 | Arizona | +16.2% | +31,504 | 194,618 | 226,122 | +14.2% | +486,348 | 3,434,790 | 3,921,138 | 2023–2033 |
| 3 | Idaho | +15.0% | +10,937 | 72,753 | 83,690 | +13.8% | +120,939 | 875,946 | 996,885 | 2022–2032 |
| 4 | Alaska | +14.3% | +1,769 | 12,380 | 14,149 | +6.9% | +22,097 | 319,345 | 341,442 | 2022–2032 |
| 5 | Wyoming | +13.1% | +1,340 | 10,201 | 11,541 | +12.1% | +33,247 | 274,118 | 307,365 | 2022–2032 |
| 6 | Delaware | +12.2% | +3,180 | 26,010 | 29,190 | +7.3% | +36,240 | 496,990 | 533,230 | 2022–2032 |
| 7 | Nevada | +10.7% | +6,897 | 64,225 | 71,122 | +14.2% | +217,818 | 1,534,673 | 1,752,491 | 2022–2032 |
| 8 | New Mexico | +10.7% | +3,075 | 28,675 | 31,750 | +10.6% | +95,632 | 905,770 | 1,001,402 | 2023–2033 |
| 9 | Georgia | +8.9% | +36,600 | 409,590 | 446,190 | +11.0% | +539,350 | 4,884,460 | 5,423,810 | 2022–2032 |
| 10 | South Carolina | +8.5% | +22,071 | 261,052 | 283,123 | +11.1% | +261,744 | 2,352,883 | 2,614,627 | 2022–2032 |
| 11 | Louisiana | +8.0% | +10,563 | 131,459 | 142,022 | +4.0% | +78,747 | 1,952,631 | 2,031,378 | 2022–2032 |
| 12 | Florida | +7.8% | +31,879 | 409,900 | 441,779 | +9.3% | +966,676 | 10,379,713 | 11,346,389 | 2022–2032 |
| 13 | Alabama | +7.8% | +21,260 | 274,140 | 295,400 | +6.2% | +141,850 | 2,284,580 | 2,426,430 | 2022–2032 |
| 14 | North Dakota | +7.6% | +2,159 | 28,354 | 30,513 | +6.9% | +33,199 | 482,059 | 515,258 | 2023–2033 |
| 15 | West Virginia | +7.6% | +3,477 | 45,999 | 49,476 | +4.0% | +29,295 | 730,739 | 760,034 | 2022–2032 |
| 16 | Tennessee | +7.2% | +26,093 | 362,102 | 388,195 | +13.9% | +477,588 | 3,423,768 | 3,901,356 | 2022–2032 |
| 17 | Mississippi | +6.8% | +10,048 | 148,006 | 158,054 | +6.3% | +73,972 | 1,182,554 | 1,256,526 | 2022–2032 |
| 18 | Connecticut | +6.7% | +10,442 | 156,499 | 166,941 | +9.0% | +162,035 | 1,793,890 | 1,955,925 | 2022–2032 |
| 19 | Texas | +6.4% | +57,644 | 904,498 | 962,142 | +14.7% | +2,109,298 | 14,335,116 | 16,444,414 | 2022–2032 |
| 20 | South Dakota | +6.2% | +2,812 | 45,101 | 47,913 | +7.7% | +39,449 | 511,117 | 550,566 | 2022–2032 |
| 21 | Oregon | +6.2% | +11,800 | 189,600 | 201,400 | +7.8% | +170,000 | 2,186,100 | 2,356,100 | 2023–2033 |
| 22 | Nebraska | +5.5% | +5,659 | 103,490 | 109,149 | +5.6% | +63,862 | 1,142,100 | 1,205,962 | 2022–2032 |
| 23 | Iowa | +5.1% | +11,350 | 223,945 | 235,295 | +6.7% | +116,720 | 1,736,815 | 1,853,535 | 2022–2032 |
| 24 | Maryland | +4.9% | +6,294 | 129,034 | 135,328 | +6.0% | +183,329 | 3,039,128 | 3,222,457 | 2023–2033 |
| 25 | Wisconsin | +4.5% | +21,525 | 476,799 | 498,324 | +7.1% | +225,071 | 3,162,331 | 3,387,402 | 2022–2032 |
| 26 | Hawaii | +4.2% | +520 | 12,500 | 13,020 | +6.1% | +41,190 | 671,010 | 712,200 | 2022–2032 |
| 27 | Kansas | +4.0% | +6,732 | 169,481 | 176,213 | +3.3% | +49,192 | 1,498,438 | 1,547,630 | 2022–2032 |
| 28 | New Jersey | +3.6% | +9,100 | 250,800 | 259,900 | +4.9% | +207,100 | 4,235,000 | 4,442,100 | 2022–2032 |
| 29 | Washington | +3.5% | +9,600 | 273,700 | 283,300 | +9.7% | +347,300 | 3,590,700 | 3,938,000 | 2023–2033 |
| 30 | North Carolina | +3.5% | +16,473 | 473,468 | 489,941 | +10.0% | +509,540 | 5,089,355 | 5,598,895 | 2022–2032 |
| 31 | Colorado | +3.4% | +5,194 | 151,164 | 156,358 | +15.6% | +490,297 | 3,148,421 | 3,638,718 | 2023–2033 |
| 32 | Minnesota | +3.4% | +11,005 | 323,919 | 334,924 | +4.6% | +144,592 | 3,135,681 | 3,280,273 | 2022–2032 |
| 33 | Montana | +3.3% | +725 | 22,000 | 22,725 | +7.8% | +42,872 | 548,663 | 591,535 | 2022–2032 |
| 34 | New Hampshire | +3.0% | +2,123 | 70,018 | 72,141 | +5.8% | +42,027 | 719,305 | 761,332 | 2022–2032 |
| 35 | Virginia | +2.5% | +5,942 | 241,793 | 247,735 | +4.5% | +190,077 | 4,248,545 | 4,438,622 | 2022–2032 |
| 36 | Arkansas | +2.4% | +3,932 | 162,193 | 166,125 | +6.2% | +89,718 | 1,451,508 | 1,541,226 | 2022–2032 |
| 37 | Rhode Island | +2.4% | +948 | 40,172 | 41,120 | +6.2% | +32,943 | 531,287 | 564,230 | 2022–2032 |
| 38 | Illinois | +1.9% | +10,696 | 571,662 | 582,358 | +2.7% | +169,122 | 6,369,370 | 6,538,492 | 2022–2032 |
| 39 | Indiana | +1.8% | +9,756 | 541,019 | 550,775 | +2.9% | +101,087 | 3,432,499 | 3,533,586 | 2022–2032 |
| 40 | Missouri | +1.5% | +4,298 | 282,238 | 286,536 | +4.3% | +136,160 | 3,134,123 | 3,270,283 | 2022–2032 |
| 41 | Massachusetts | +0.8% | +1,945 | 236,045 | 237,990 | +5.6% | +215,368 | 3,822,154 | 4,037,522 | 2023–2033 |
| 42 | Pennsylvania | +0.7% | +4,240 | 566,150 | 570,390 | +3.4% | +216,280 | 6,417,870 | 6,634,150 | 2023–2033 |
| 43 | California | -0.2% | -2,500 | 1,285,600 | 1,283,100 | +8.8% | +1,719,400 | 19,511,500 | 21,230,900 | 2023–2033 |
| 44 | Oklahoma | -0.2% | -280 | 133,100 | 132,820 | +4.8% | +88,260 | 1,826,010 | 1,914,270 | 2022–2032 |
| 45 | Ohio | -0.4% | -2,575 | 652,965 | 650,390 | +4.6% | +257,256 | 5,567,009 | 5,824,265 | 2020–2030 |
| 46 | Michigan | -3.0% | -18,230 | 603,410 | 585,180 | +0.6% | +25,030 | 4,524,490 | 4,549,520 | 2022–2032 |
| 47 | Vermont | -3.8% | -1,092 | 29,088 | 27,996 | +7.2% | +24,835 | 345,326 | 370,161 | 2022–2032 |
| 48 | Maine | -5.1% | -2,750 | 54,180 | 51,430 | -1.8% | -12,460 | 710,160 | 697,700 | 2022–2032 |
| 49 | New York | -11.9% | -50,220 | 423,100 | 372,880 | +11.0% | +1,123,390 | 10,173,370 | 11,296,760 | 2022–2032 |
