Manufacturing is booming in the Dayton, Ohio area. Last year alone, over $420 million investment dollars were funneled into the area and 1,700 new jobs were created. A significant part of this growth comes from a resurgence in metal fabrication and plastic injection molding facilities.
Dayton was brutalized by the manufacturing exodus in the last few decades. To help manufacturing rebound, the city has made wise investments in infrastructure. Beyond the existing infrastructure developed for the bygone era of automotive manufacturing, they’ve invested heavily in improving their aquifer. They’ve boosted capacity and preservation standards to ensure that they can meet and exceed demand for both industry and residential use.
Their strategic positioning also assists with drawing plastic injection manufacturers into a new era of innovation and growth.The Dayton area boasts an abundance of highly-trained manufacturing workers ready to get back to business and, according to Dean of Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs, Edward Hill, Dayton is “within 600 miles of 60 percent of the nation’s consumer market,” granting them a strong advantage when it comes to sourcing and distribution. The Dayton Chamber of Commerce is focused on boosting their logistics potential with a 2-4 year plan which will help train the local workforce, as well as network, educate, and advocate for supply chain companies in the region. The boost in manufacturing is happening in part because overseas manufacturing is rising in price while US manufacturing offers cheaper overall production costs.
These economic realities, combined with the resurgence of the US auto-industry, drives the growth of Dayton-area manufacturing. With a strong presence of the automotive, aircraft, polymer, and chemical industries, plastic injection molding is a highly desired and necessary part of the regional supply chain. All of this points to continued positive growth for the injection molding industry in the area.