{"id":8352,"date":"2012-05-11T14:56:54","date_gmt":"2012-05-11T18:56:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/new-hampshire\/?p=8352"},"modified":"2013-02-08T14:52:42","modified_gmt":"2013-02-08T19:52:42","slug":"three-reasons-why-its-boom-time-for-nh-manufacturers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/new-hampshire\/2012\/05\/11\/three-reasons-why-its-boom-time-for-nh-manufacturers\/","title":{"rendered":"Three Reasons Why It’s Boom Time For NH Manufacturers"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Amanda Loder \/ StateImpact New Hampshire<\/p>

A new report says "high road" policies help grow manufacturing economies<\/p><\/div>\n

Although tourism<\/a> is something of a signature industry for New Hampshire, the largest sector of the state’s economy–by far–is advanced manufacturing<\/a>.\u00a0 So-called “SMHT” (Smart Manufacturing\/High Technology).<\/p>\n

Looking back on the exodus of shoe and textile factories, the slow death of the wood products industry, and the decline of high-tech in the 1990’s, you’d be forgiven for chalking-up the growth of SHMT to the miraculous.<\/p>\n

But according to a new report released by the Brookings Institution<\/a> on American manufacturing, there are three main reasons why New Hampshire’s seeing a renaissance in this sector.<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Geographic Clustering: <\/strong>According to Brookings researchers, the best-case scenario for a state’s manufacturing economy is to have a number of different factories, specializing in similar areas, close together.\u00a0 These days, companies are less likely to make all, or even most, of the pieces in a single product.\u00a0 Instead, they outsource to other companies, creating an intricate supply chain.\u00a0 So if you have a bunch of factories making computer parts situated close together, other firms look at an area and say, “Hey, if we move there, we can save money on transportation and have access to a decent labor pool.”\u00a0 Companies naturally like to do this.\u00a0 And the notable thing about New Hampshire’s manufacturing sector is that there are some pretty clear specialties clustered in key parts of the state.\u00a0 For example, the Seacoast<\/a> and Upper Valley<\/a> are particularly strong in high-tech manufacturing, while the Monadnock Region<\/a> and Merrimack Valley<\/a> are known for their advanced machining.\u00a0 In other words, when it comes to clustering, success breeds success.<\/strong><\/li>\n

    <\/p>\n

  2. The Boston Feeder: <\/strong>This is related to clustering.\u00a0 The Brookings report notes that nearly 80 percent of manufacturing jobs are concentrated in metropolitan areas.\u00a0 Why is this an advantage?\u00a0 It’s all about proximity.\u00a0 Recently, we posted a piece looking at urban vs. rural productivity in the US<\/a>.\u00a0 On average, highly-urbanized states are much more productive.\u00a0 It doesn’t take as long to make deliveries, pick up supplies, or meet with potential customers.\u00a0 Metros also tend to have a lot more in the way of high-tech infrastructure, like broadband access, which is helpful for companies.\u00a0 From the manufacturers’ perspective, once you’ve clustered numerous, similar factories in the same city, that’s not just access to a specialized labor pool; it’s access to a large <\/em>specialized labor pool.\u00a0 And since urban economies tend to be highly diverse, they have easy access to other things they need: accountants, engineers, consultants, etc.\u00a0 The Brookings researchers found that counties relatively close to urban areas also benefited from this clustering.\u00a0 So thanks to Boston’s status as a high-tech mecca, the Merrimack Valley, Seacoast, Upper Valley and Monadnock Region disproportionately benefit<\/strong><\/strong>.<\/strong><\/li>\n

    <\/p>\n

  3. Related<\/h4>
    Posts<\/h5>