Manufacturing Employment by Subsector
Thousands 45
40
35
30
Primary Metals Fabricated Metals Transportation Equipment Wood Products & Furniture Chemicals
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
Source : Bureau of Business and Economic Research .
on manufacturing activity where nearly one-fourth of the economic base comes from historically relevant industries such as steel , wood products and chemicals .
The chemicals subsector accounts for roughly one-fifth of jobs in West Virginia ’ s manufacturing sector jobs as well as nearly 40 % of the value of the sector ’ s economic output . The late 2017 opening and subsequent build-out of Procter & Gamble ’ s $ 500 million facility at the Tabler Station site in Berkeley County has been the sector ’ s most significant development in many years . As construction of the facility ’ s internal operations and campus worked toward completion , the workforce has increased to more than 1,400 people , and this excludes the staffing at packaging and logistics operations that have colocated on-site . Unfortunately , the chemicals subsector suffered a large setback in late 2020 with the announcement by Viatris that it would close the Mylan pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Morgantown by mid-2021 , resulting in the elimination of more than 1,500 jobs .
The state ’ s transportation equipment subsector is made up of a growing auto parts supply chain that stretches across the Kanawha and Mid-Ohio River valleys as well as a mix of civilian and defense aerospace equipment production facilities scattered throughout the state . Auto parts manufacturing has easily represented the fastest-growing portion of West Virginia ’ s manufacturing base and in fact is the only one to record job and output growth over the past decade . Overall , auto parts plants have added jobs at a rate of more than 7 % on an average annual basis since 2008 . Much of this growth is connected to Toyota Motor Manufacturing ’ s ongoing investments at its powertrain manufacturing facility in Putnam County , including an upcoming $ 210 million investment that will generate 100 new jobs . Other recent developments such as Hino Motors Manufacturing ’ s new truck assembly plant in the Parkersburg area and its subsequent expansion as well as investments by companies such as NGK Spark Plugs and Allevard Sogefi have helped to position West Virginia as a nascent player in the U . S . auto manufacturing supply chain .
Although the state ’ s aerospace industry has struggled at times over the past decade , conditions have improved during the past couple of years . Indeed , aviation services and aircraft parts construction firms have increased their presence in North Central West Virginia thanks to increased demand for commercial aircraft nationally as well as efforts to build out the region ’ s commercial travel options . Moreover , the Applied Ballistics Laboratory in Mineral County has recorded some job gains in the past year or so thanks to new contract awards for building and testing advanced rocketry , and the facility should see additional expansions as Northrop Grumman has announced that it will hire several hundred workers over the next few years . •