What US manufacturing needs to succeed

Today, manufacturing in the U.S. is as resilient and robust as ever. But to continue manufacturing’s success in the U.S., we must create a business environment that enables our progress. We need an environment that helps manufacturers succeed.

Manufacturing in the U.S. has succeeded because our solutions are grounded on fundamental values. The first of these values is free enterprise: market forces that drive innovation and growth. Another is competitiveness: our ability to invest and expand markets and succeed in the global economy.

These values have enabled manufacturing to make a very valuable and lasting impact on the U.S. economy. Today, manufacturers are creating more jobs, making more products and making them better than ever before. Every year, manufacturing contributes more than $2 trillion to the American economy, or one out of every eight dollars, according to the National Association of Manufacturers.

And we can’t underestimate manufacturing’s indirect influence, too: Manufacturing has the biggest multiplier effect of any industry. Every manufacturing dollar in America adds $1.37 to the economy, according to the NAM — nothing else comes close.

Even with this momentum, there are speed bumps that serve to slow us down.

Manufacturing faces a disproportionate share of the burden of government regulations. Business is inhibited when our policies don’t match principles, including free enterprise and competitiveness.

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