Minnesota Manufacturers Week showcases a growing sector of state's economy

Manufacturing added more than 7,100 jobs to Minnesota's economy over the past 12 months. While most of these companies quietly go about business without seeking acclaim, the public gets a real sense of their contributions each October through Minnesota Manufacturers Week.

"At Enterprise Minnesota we celebrate the success of Minnesota's manufacturers every day of the year," says Bob Kill, Enterprise Minnesota president & CEO. "We're pleased to see the growing groundswell of appreciation for the value of manufacturing to our state's economy, as evidenced by the many events being held throughout the state during the last week of October."

This year more than 40 Minnesota manufacturers will celebrate Minnesota Manufacturer's Week by opening their doors public tours. Other events include the Governor's Summit on October 25, the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce Summit on October 26, and the Minnesota Precision Manufacturers Association annual event on October 27.

"When people drive past a manufacturing facility, they might not consider the high-tech, skilled work that happens inside that building every day," said Enterprise Minnesota president Bob Kill, Enterprise Minnesota president & CEO. "We're pleased to see the growing groundswell of appreciation for the value of manufacturing to our state's economy, as evidenced by the many events being held throughout the state during the last week of October."

Long one of the Minnesota's economic strengths, manufacturers remain a backbone of the state's economy. They employ more than one in 10 workers in the state, and pay more than average for wages, accounting for about 15 percent of all wages paid.

In addition, each manufacturing job supports another 1.3 jobs elsewhere through suppliers and employee spending. All together, manufacturing accounts for almost 30 percent of all jobs in Minnesota, according to the DEED.

The Manufacturer's Week events mirror the highly successful Manufacturing Day first hosted in the St. Cloud area in 2009. More than 5,000 visitors walked through eleven manufacturing companies to learn more about the industry. Manufactures in Alexandria and Mankato built on that success in subsequent years, holding their own Tour of Manufacturing in 2010. All three regions will participate in 2011 along with companies in the Twin Cities.

The Minnesota Chamber of Commerce Minnesota Manufacturers Summit will be held on October 26 at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in Bloomington. The full-day line-up of speakers will include new University of Minnesota president Eric Kaler and National Association of Manufacturers CEO Jay Timmons.

Governor Mark Dayton Jobs Summit will be held on October 25 at the Crowne Plaza Riverfront Hotel in St. Paul. The day will include breakout sessions on job growth, accessing capital, and healthcare, with a keynote address by Michael Mandelbaum, coauthor (with Thomas Friedman) of the newly released new book "That Used to Be Us: How America Fell Behind in the World It Invented and How we Can Come Back."

Increasing the focus on manufacturing as an engine for economic growth is important says Kill, as the state continues on a slow climb out of the last recession.

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