We recently commissioned a study that found the total economic impact of manufacturing in Illinois is estimated to be between $580 billion and $611 billion every year – the largest share of the state’s Gross Domestic Product of any industry. Manufacturing directly employs 662,298 workers but ultimately supports nearly 1.8 million jobs, generating up to $150 billion in income for residents annually. In all, it’s estimated that the manufacturing industry supports nearly 30% of all jobs in Illinois, making it among the state’s largest industry sectors.
Your work has celebrated CLC's new Advanced Technology Center. What is the significance of this major investment?
We launched our bus tour from the facility because it really represents the future of our industry. Manufacturing is clean, sustainable and high-tech, with artificial intelligence, robotics, 5G and virtual reality transforming the industry and our world.
As the manufacturing industry evolves in the face of rapid technological development, we must invest in education and workforce development programs - exactly like we're seeing at the ATC.
By providing best-in-class training for a new generation of manufacturing workers, CLC is helping grow jobs in Lake County and strengthening our manufacturing ecosystem across Illinois.
What is the coolest thing made in Illinois?
It’s truly impossible for me to pick just one. Illinois manufacturers produce everything from life-saving vaccines and medical treatments to boundary-breaking electric vehicles and components used for space exploration. Our manufacturers keep store shelves stocked with nutritious food and delectable snacks and create sporting equipment used everywhere from neighborhood fields to professional leagues. They make core structural products from steel, rebar, and motors to chemicals and flavorings, and even create high-tech gadgets used for national defense and energy to power our homes and businesses.
Lake County manufacturers support nearly 100,000 jobs that produce $48.4 billion in economic output, which is nearly one-third of the county’s economy. Lake County is the home of well-known global leaders like Abbott, AbbVie, Horizon Therapeutics, Medline, Baxter, Novelis, Zebra Technologies, Nielsen-Massey Vanilla, MacLean Fogg and more. That's not to mention the many smaller manufacturers who are integral to the economy and produce items that we rely on every day.
How has LCP impacted what you do?
LCP is best-of-the-best when it comes to economic development, and we have seen the results first-hand in Lake County, with more than $617 million in direct investment and the creation/retention of more than 7,900 jobs over the last four years alone. These successes are the direct result of LCP and their leadership at the intersection of site selection, business incentives, workforce, and infrastructure. Nobody does it better in Illinois!
