Above: Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. in Fort Worth, TX, the state's second-largest manufacturer by number of employees. (source: Lockheed Martin Aeronautics)
With one of the best tax climates in the nation as well as a strong workforce and solid infrastructure, Texas remains a top destination for manufacturers across multiple industries, from oil exploration to auto manufacturing, biotech production to food processing. Home to 1.2 million workers or roughly 13% of the nation’s manufacturing workforce, Texas remains the second-largest manufacturing state in the U.S. (after California) and is the largest state exporter, exporting a record $243.9 billion worth of goods in 2019.
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For those looking do business with Texas manufacturers, it helps to have an in-depth understanding of the state’s manufacturing climate. Today, we’re covering some of the key facts and trends in the state based on our survey of Texas manufacturers and providing a look at the top manufacturing companies operating in the Lone Star State.
Texas is currently home to 17,169 manufacturing companies employing 1,101,992 workers. According to IndustrySelect’s database of 350,000+ U.S. manufacturing companies, there are 74,696 executive contacts among Texas’ manufacturing companies, including 9,560 presidents, 6,461owners and partners; 6,992 vice-presidents and 7,074 sales, marketing and purchasing executives.
Other facts to know about Texas manufacturers, based on IndustrySelect’s advanced criteria available to subscribers:
• 2% of Texas manufacturing companies are women owned
• 1% are minority owned
• 13% are publicly owned companies
• 12% import raw materials
• 27% distribute their products internationally
Texas’ top industry by number of employees is industrial machinery, accounting for 16% of the state’s industrial workforce. This is followed by fabricated metals with 12%; food processing with 11% and electronic & electrical equipment, accounting for 9% of the state’s industrial jobs.
Looking at MNI’s city data, Houston is home to the most industrial jobs, with 191,631 workers. The city of Houston also has the distinction of being the top city in the U.S. for number of industrial jobs. Read more: Top Manufacturing Cities in the U.S.
Fort Worth ranks second with 69,067 industrial jobs, followed by Austin with 62,873 and Dallas with 54,796.
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Looking at top Texas industrial regions, Harris County is home to the most industrial jobs, accounting for 353,752, followed by Dallas County with 183,634.
Other top Texas industrial counties:
• Tarrant County: 109,817
• Travis County: 61,059
• Bexar County: 57,805
Next, we’ll take a look at the state’s top companies
Company | Employees | City | State |
---|---|---|---|
Tesla, Inc. | 20,000 | Austin | TX |
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. | 16,400 | Fort Worth | TX |
Dell, Inc. | 13,000 | Round Rock | TX |
ConocoPhillips | 9,900 | Houston | TX |
Apple, Inc. | 7,000 | Austin | TX |
Daikin Comfort Technologies Distribution, Inc. | 7,000 | Waller | TX |
L3Harris Technologies, Inc., ISR Systems | 5,500 | Greenville | TX |
Bell Textron, Inc. | 5,400 | Fort Worth | TX |
NXP Semiconductors USA, Inc. | 5,000 | Austin | TX |
Technip Energy North America Tower 3 | 5,000 | Houston | TX |
1. Tesla (Austin)
Tesla, Inc., the world’s leading electric vehicle and clean energy company, has its headquarters in Austin, Texas. The company is known for accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable energy with electric cars, solar, and integrated renewable energy solutions for homes and businesses. Tesla’s new corporate headquarters is located on the massive Gigafactory Texas site and employs 20,000 at this location, ranking it tops in Texas for the largest industrial site based on employment.
2. Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. (Fort Worth)
With 16,400 employees, Lockheed Martin is the second-largest industrial employer in Texas. At this location, Lockheed produces military aircraft, including the F-2., F-22, F-35, and T-50.
3. Dell, Inc. (Round Rock)
Dell is among the world’s well-known manufacturers of personal & institutional computers. 13,000 Texas workers are employed at Dell’s headquarters in Round Rock.
4. ConocoPhilips (Houston)
Conoco Philips in Houston: ConocoPhillips is an independent exploration and production (E&P) company headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company’s headquarters, completed in 2018, includes two state-of-the-art buildings named after their foundational SPIRIT Values. They explore for, produce, transport, and market crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, natural gas liquids, and liquefied natural gas on a worldwide basis.
5. Apple, Inc. (Austin)
Apple, Inc. is a U.S-based technology giant, producing everything from personal computers, tablets, smartphones, smartwatches, along with software and other online services, and ranks supreme among the top tech companies in the world. Their Austin location, which underwent an expansion in 2019, specializes in laptop manufacturing, specifically production of the MacBook Pro. It is the state’s third-largest industrial employer with 7,000 workers.
6. Daikin Comfort Technologies Distribution, Inc. (Waller)
Daikin Comfort Technologies North America, Inc., formerly known as Goodman Global Group, Inc., is a leading manufacturer of residential air conditioners in the U.S. The company is located in Waller, Texas, and is part of the Daikin Group, which is the World’s No. 1 air conditioning company. Their products are sold in over 140 countries, including throughout North America.
7. L3Harris Technologies, Inc., ISR Systems (Greenville)
With 48,000 employees and locations in more than 100 countries, L3Harris Technologies, Inc is a global leader in military equipment. Its Greenville location is focused on electronic defense systems, employing 5,500.
8. Bell Textron, Inc. (Fort Worth)
Aeronautics giant Bell Textron produces military and commercial aircraft, with locations in more than 90 countries. The Fort Worth location, home to 5,400 workers, serves as its global headquarters and is home to its Manufacturing Technology Center.
9. NXP Semiconductors USA, Inc. (Austin)
NXP Semiconductors produces semiconductors and integrated circuits for a variety of purposes, including commercial (smart home) industrial, automotive, retail and communication infrastructure. Employing 5,000, the company’s brands include QorIQ, Layerscape, Airfast, Kinetis, Vybrid, i.MX, Qorivva, Xtrinsic, and Analog.
10. Technip Energy North America Tower 3 FMC (Houston)
Industrial equipment manufacturer TechnipFMC is a global leader in oil and gas projects, technologies, systems, and services and produces flexible fluid pipelines for the energy industry.
For those looking to do business with manufacturers, IndustrySelect’s database of 350,000+ U.S. manufacturers is a top resource for both developing and researching sales leads in the manufacturing sector.
An IndustrySelect subscription can put you on a first-name basis with Texas' 23,000 manufacturing companies and 54,000 executives. Subscribers can select up to 30 data points on any manufacturing company in the U.S. to help identify or pre-qualify leads. Company profiles also include the contact information for hard-to-find executive decision-makers. Try a free demo today!
Editor's Note: This article was originally published in November of 2020. It is updated annually to reflect new data and statistics on Texas manufacturing.