Design-Based Manufacturing
In Southwest Michigan, we pride ourselves as being a community famous for its many “firsts” and innovative manufacturing processes. Checkered cabs. Parchment paper. Upjohn’s pharmaceutical pill. Shakespeare Rod & Wheel. Gibson Guitars. Stryker’s Turning Bed Frame. All were once “Made in Southwest Michigan.”
Due to innovation and diversification, today’s design-based products now include Eaton transmissions, cereal cartons by Graphic Packaging International, Parker Aerospace's hydraulic components, Pfizer medicines, food containers by Fabri-Kal and Stryker orthopedic implants. A spirit of entrepreneurship and collaboration, a well-educated and skilled workforce and an extensive network of support services available to employers have long been and still are major attractions to manufacturers. Long live innovation! Long live manufacturing!
- Affordable wage rates: $7.99 to $19.99 per hour
- Non-union environment with only 6% private union membership
- Key strategic location on NAFTA corridor
- BC CAL KAL Port of Battle Creek — Foreign-Trade Zone 43
- Western Michigan University’s School of College of Engineering and Applied Sciences
- Center for Advanced Vehicle Design and Simulation (CAViDS) at Western Michigan University
- More than 220,000 college and university students within a 75-mile radius
- Academy training for welders, mechatronics, automotive technicians, wind turbine technicians and more
- Diverse industrial supplier base
- Readily available and easily accessible public warehousing and contract distribution services
- Skilled workforce of 64,000 currently employed across all sectors which include pharmaceuticals, automotive, medical device, plastics, tool and die, furniture and food processing
Top Regional Employers by County (by Estimated # of Employees)
| Allegan County | Primary Sector | Estimated # of Employees |
|---|---|---|
| Haworth | Furniture | 2,450 |
| Smithfield Beef | Food Processor | 250 |
| Safari Circuits | Medical Device | 160 |
| Bay Valley Foods | Food Processor | 120 |
| Truheat | Industrial Heating | 110 |
| Berrien County | Primary Sector | Estimated # of Employees |
| Whirlpool Corporation | Appliances | 4,000 |
| Leco Corporation | Agriculture/Health Sciences | 600 |
| Gast Manufacturing | Automotive | 320 |
| Premier Tool & Die Cast Corporation | Tool and Die | 315 |
| Pilkington North America | Glass | 302 |
| FAPCO | Packaging | 290 |
| IPC Print Service | Printing | 273 |
| Lane Automotive | Automotive | 224 |
| Robert Bosch LLC | Automotive | 203 |
| JVIS Manufacturing | Automotive | 200 |
| Branch County | Primary Sector | Estimated # of Employees |
| Asama Coldwater Manufacturing | Automotive | 350 |
| ConAgra Foods | Food Processing | 350 |
| Hutchinson FTS | Automotive | 300 |
| Crotty Corporation | Automotive | 250 |
| Douglas Autotech | Automotive | 232 |
| Oak Royal Industries | Machining | 200 |
| Quality Springs | Automotive | 195 |
| Sekisui America Corporation | Housing | 180 |
| Calhoun County | Primary Sector | Estimated # of Employees |
| Kellogg Company | Food Processing | 2,000 |
| Denso Manufacturing | Automotive | 1,789 |
| II Stanley Company | Automotive | 750 |
| Post Foods | Food Processing | 650 |
| Duncan Aviation | Aerospace | 560 |
| TRMI Inc. | Transportation | 450 |
| Musashi Auto Parts | Automotive | 430 |
| Hi Lex | Automotive | 380 |
| Asmo Manufacturing | Automotive | 375 |
| Cass County | Primary Sector | Estimated # of Employees |
| Rospatch Jesco Corporation | Furniture | 350 |
| K & M Machine | Fabricating | 250 |
| Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation | Packaging | 250 |
| Lyons Industries | Kitchen and Bath Components | 220 |
| North American Forest Products | Lumber | 214 |
| Mennel Milling Company of Michigan | Food Processing | 200 |
| Creative Foam Corporation | Foam | 150 |
| Best Plastics | Plastics | 140 |
| Kalamazoo County | Primary Sector | Estimated # of Employees |
| Pfizer | Pharmaceuticals | 6,000 |
| Stryker | Medical Device | 3,000 |
| Summit Polymers | AM | 1,555 |
| Parker Hydraulics | Power Management | 640 |
| Eaton Corporation | Power Management | 600 |
| Graphic Packaging Corporation | Packaging | 476 |
| Flowserve Corporation | Material Flow | 400 |
| MANN+HUMMEL | Automotive | 400 |
| Benteler Automotive | Automotive | 340 |
| Landscape Forms | Furniture | 300 |
| St. Joseph County | Primary Sector | Estimated # of Employees |
| Morgan Olson Corporation | Automotive | 775 |
| American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc. | Automotive | 350 |
| Burr Oak Tool | Tool and Die | 320 |
| Penguin | Plastics | 230 |
| Dexter Chassis Group | Automotive | 220 |
| Armstrong International | Energy Management | 220 |
| Vanguard | Automotive | 200 |
| Sturgis Molded Products | Plastics | 200 |
| Van Buren County | Primary Sector | Estimated # of Employees |
| Coca-Cola Company | Food Processing | 500 |
| AFL Automotive Limited Partnership | Automotive | 500 |
| Welch Foods | Food Processing | 260 |
| South Haven Packaging | Packaging | 250 |
| Pullman Industries | Automotive | 200 |
| Trelleborg YSH | Automotive | 165 |
| Special-Lite | Housing | 140 |
Source: Employment data is derived from a variety of sources and is estimated at a single point in time.
Average Wage by Job Category
| Manufacturing | Average Hourly Wages |
|---|---|
| Beverage & Tobacco Products | $14.71 |
| Chemical | $33.79 |
| Computer & Electronic Products | $21.86 |
| Electrical Equipment & Appliances | $18.93 |
| Fabricated Metal | $20.13 |
| Food | $21.66 |
| Furniture & Related Products | $19.53 |
| Machinery | $25.44 |
| Miscellaneous | $21.30 |
| Non-Metallic Mineral Products | $13.91 |
| Paper | $26.31 |
| Plastics & Rubber Products | $20.01 |
| Primary Metal | $22.87 |
| Printing | $19.48 |
| Textile Mills | $13.31 |
| Textile Product Mills | $11.90 |
| Transportation Equipment | $28.11 |
| Wood Products | $16.93 |
| Logistics | Average Hourly Wages |
| Truck Transportation | $21.44 |
| Transit & Ground Passenger Transportation | $7.48 |
| Support Activities for Transportation | $13.08 |
| Warehousing & Storage | $18.07 |
| Food Processing | Average Hourly Wages |
| Crop Production | $11.17 |
| Agricultures & Forestry Support Activities | $6.07 |
Source: Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget, 1st Quarter, 2011
| Average Wage by Occupation | Mean Hourly Wages |
|---|---|
| Assemblers & Fabricators, All Other | $12.25 |
| Chemical Technicians | $19.12 |
| Chemists | $32.45 |
| Civil Engineers | $36.37 |
| Conditioning & Refrigeration Mechanics | $20.26 |
| Electrical & Electronic Engineering Technicians | $25.25 |
| Electrical Engineers | $38.36 |
| Electrical Engineers, Except Computer | $34.63 |
| Engineers, All Other | $32.25 |
| Farming, Fishing & Forestry Occupations | $14.67 |
| Farmworkers & Laborers, Crop, Nursery & Greenhouse | $10.94 |
| Farmworkers, Farm & Ranch Animals | $13.72 |
| First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Office & Administration | $22.63 |
| First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Production & Operating Workers | $26.70 |
| Heat Treating Equipment Setters, Operators & Tenders | $14.53 |
| Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Mechanics | $22.25 |
| Helpers - Installation, Maintenance & Repair | $13.81 |
| Industrial Engineering Technicians | $25.48 |
| Industrial Engineers | $40.61 |
| Industrial Machinery Mechanics | $22.32 |
| Industrial Production Managers | $46.17 |
| Machinists | $18.27 |
| Maintenance & Repair Workers, General | $17.72 |
| Maintenance Workers, Machiners | $25.10 |
| Mechanical Drafters | $22.97 |
| Mechanical Engineering Technicians | $24.47 |
| Mechanical Engineers | $34.24 |
| Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists | $46.46 |
| Metal Workers & Plastic Workers | $14.99 |
| Millwrights | $25.29 |
| Molding, Coremaking, & Casting Machine Setters, Operators, & Tenders, Metal & Plastic | $14.76 |
| Office & Administrative Support | $14.92 |
| Packaging & Filling Machine Operators & Tenders | $20.05 |
| Packaging & Filling Machine Operators & Tenders | $13.87 |
| Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators & Tenders | $17.08 |
| Production | $16.34 |
| Purchasing Managers | $41.22 |
| Team Assemblers | $13.61 |
| Tool & Die Makers | $25.62 |
| Tool Grinders, Filers & Sharpeners | $14.80 |
| Transportation, Storage & Distribution Managers | $34.33 |
| Welders, Cutters, Solderers & Brazers | $15.24 |
Source: Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget, Annual Statistics, 2010
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