Manufacturing

The Milwaukee Region is a national leader in precision manufacturing and the production of sophisticated industrial controls and medical imaging equipment. Its skilled workforce, engineering support and manufacturing heritage have also made it the nation’s leading producer of mining machinery, hoists, monorails, speed changers, drives and gears.

Sixteen percent of the region’s workforce is employed in manufacturing, ranking second in the nation among the top 50 metros for manufacturing jobs. The region's diverse mix of manufacturing companies produces everything from basic foundry parts to low-emission engines, advanced aviation systems and sophisticated industrial controls. The region is especially noted for engine and equipment manufacturing, automation and advanced manufacturing and medical technology.

Eleven locally based manufacturers are on the Fortune 1000 list – A.O. Smith, Briggs & Stratton, Bucyrus International, Harley-Davidson, Johnson Controls, Diversey, Joy Global, Modine Manufacturing, Rexnord, Rockwell Automation and Snap-On. S.C. Johnson is on the Forbes list of America's largest private companies.

The region's technical colleges and universities provide critical training and research support, including applied technology centers that manufacturers can use to test their designs and create prototypes. Technology transfer programs help companies turn ideas into marketable products.

Power, Automation & Controls Industry

Johnson Controls and Rockwell Automation, both Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the region, are major automation and control companies with nearly 6,000 employees total. Other automation and control companies include Eaton, DRS, ABB and Magnetek. Other major employers include Cooper Power and Waukesha Electric in the power transmission and transformers sector, and Astronautics in the navigational instruments sector.

Wisconsin Energy Research Consortium

Power, controls and energy are among Milwaukee’s largest manufacturing sectors. The Wisconsin Energy Research Consortium (WERC) brings together companies such as Rockwell Automation, Johnson Controls, Eaton, Kohler, DRS Technologies, We Energies and American Transmission with researchers from our university engineering schools and technical colleges to collaborate on basic research projects.

WERC develops strategies to train workers in the latest technical skills required by our manufacturers and links member companies to share best practices and market
intelligence. For more information on WERC, visit www.energywercs.org.

Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership

The Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership (WMEP) enhances the success of Wisconsin's small to mid-size manufacturers by providing real-world knowledge in continuous improvement, business strategies and best practices. WMEP is also a strong advocate of manufacturing and provides information to those focused on the success of Wisconsin manufacturing.

In 2008, WMEP conducted a groundbreaking Next Generation Manufacturing Survey to assess the global competitiveness of Wisconsin manufacturers. To learn more about the results of the survey, click here.

FORTUNE 1000 AND FORBES LARGEST PRIVATE MANUFACTURERS

COMPANY	EMPLOYEES	PRODUCTS
A.O. Smith	16,800	Electric motors; commercial and residential water heating equipment; and copper-tube boilers
Briggs & Stratton	8,000	Air-cooled engines
Bucyrus International	7,200	Mining equipment and services
Harley-Davidson	9,800	Motorcycles and accessories
Johnson Controls	136,000	Automotive seating, batteries and industrial controls
JohnsonDiversey	11,500	Commercial cleaning, sanitation and hygiene solutions
Joy Global	9,200	Mining equipment and services
Modine Manufacturing	7,900	Thermal management technology
Rexnord	7,100	Industrial equipment and components
Rockwell Automation	20,000	Industrial controls and software
S.C. Johnson	12,000	Household products
Snap-on	11,600	Tool, diagnostic and equipment products

REPRESENTATIVE APPLIED TECHNOLOGY CENTERS

CENTER	SPONSOR	SERVICES
Applied Technology Center	Milwaukee School of Engineering	Assists design, development and evaluation of products, processes and manufacturing systems
Center for Biomolecular Modeling	Milwaukee School of Engineering	3-D molecular models
Center for By-Products Utilization	University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee	Researches technology that can be used to find environmentally and economically effective uses of industrial byproducts and consumer waste
Center for Intelligent Systems, Controls and Signal Processing	Marquette University	Assists in the development of intelligent systems
Center for Materials Science and Technology	Marquette University	Research and knowledge transfer in biomaterials, electronic ceramics, solid state sensors, structural and electrical composites
Center for Supply Chain Management	Marquette University	Industry-university collaborative venture for education, research and information sharing of supply chain management strategies
Engineering Research Center for Compact and Efficient Fluid Power	Milwaukee School of Engineering	Applying new technologies such as rapid prototyping, sensors, nanotechnology and tribology plus contamination analysis, to fluid power
Fluid Power Institute	Milwaukee School of Engineering	Fluid-power component and system evaluations
NanoEngineering Laboratory	Milwaukee School of Engineering	Nano-scale research in the areas of wear reduction and surface enhancement
Photonics and Applied Optics Center	Milwaukee School of Engineering	Optical projects and experiments for lasers, LEDs, sensor applications and optical fabrication
Rapid Prototyping Center	Milwaukee School of Engineering	Applies proven technologies to compress the production cycle
Thermofluid Science and Energy Research Center	Marquette University	Research and development of energy conversion systems and heat/mass exchange equipment

Manufacturing Brochure

Made in Milwaukee

The Milwaukee Region ranks

No. 2

among the nation's top 50 metros for manufacturing employment.