Manufacturing Matters to North Dakota's Future

Let’s face facts: North Dakota is a commodity-based economy. It always has been and always will be.

Agriculture and energy are the pillars supporting North Dakota’s economy. These sectors not only drive much of our economy, they also, in many ways, define our culture and philosophy. But, as we are seeing yet again, North Dakota is a hostage to the fluctuations within these volatile markets. The boom in both agriculture and energy that generated so much prosperity for the last decade has ended. State and local governments are having to adjust their budgets and ‘economic diversification’ has again become a dominant topic for conversation.
 
Too often what’s lost in this conversation, and what so many North Dakotans fail to appreciate, is the contribution of North Dakota’s manufacturing sector and its potential to stabilize our economy.
 
When you think about it, economic diversification is really about stabilization. We cannot change our dependence of agriculture and energy, nor should we. But we can change how much we depend on these commodity markets. Investing in manufacturing today is the smartest investment we can make to guarantee a more stable economy tomorrow.
 
If you are not convinced, then look at manufacturing’s importance to our state now.

In 2015, North Dakota’s manufacturers’ total output was $3.7 billion, representing almost six percent of our state’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Of that, $1.57 billion was exported to free trade agreement nations. In fact, 73 percent of our manufactured goods are exported to Canada and Mexico – an important reminder of NAFTA’s importance to our state.
 
If you are impressed by these numbers, then consider that 26,000 North Dakotans, 5.6 percent of our state’s workforce, work in manufacturing. And that they make an average of $10,000 more than other workers. The average annual compensation in 2015 for nonfarm businesses was $49,707 compared to an average compensation of $59,938 for North Dakota’s manufacturing workers.


As you can see, manufacturing really is North Dakota’s best kept economic secret.

Expanding our manufacturing sector is essential to growing North Dakota. Legislators and policy-makers need to understand this. That is why the Greater North Dakota Chamber will be hosting Manufacturing Day at the State Capitol on February 13. Manufacturers from across our state will be there to share their stories and showcase their products.

North Dakota does not need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to economic development. Stabilizing our economy is our ultimate objective. And we can start today by making manufacturing a priority for our state.