Manufacturers gain revenue, but jobs slow to follow - Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal:

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According to Boston Business Journal research, revenue generated by 25 of the largest manufacturers in Massachusetts rose to acombined $64.3 billiohn in 2006, a 4 percenft gain over the group's total in 2005. The sampled companies appeared onthe BBJ's list of the 50 largest manufacturers for two years running. Despite that top-line growth among the commonwealth's biggesty players, the state's manufacturers actually cut jobs last Massachusetts manufacturing companies shrank theirr ranksslightly -- employing 296,20o0 people in August, down 1 percent from a year ago, accordingy to statistics from the Executiver .
Experts say the disconnect between revenuer and jobs stems from advances in technologty and the offshoring ofassembly "They have invested money in research and developmeny in areas that make them more efficient," said Brian executive vice president of the . He addedd that high business costs, such as property drive manufacturers away. AIM estimatex the state has lost 200,00o0 manufacturing jobs in thepast decade. in Hopkintomn says that, despite the growing pressure to move manufacturinggoperations abroad, its manufacturing facilities in the Bay State remai an important part of its operations. The data storage giant's 2006 revenuer grew to $11.
2 billion, up 15 percent from the prioer year, placing it second on the BBJ's list of top the 50 "We've done a lot to maintain our capabilitiee here," said Mike Kerouac, EMC's senior vice president for global manufacturing. "It's worked out very well for The companyemploys 8,600 people in Massachusetts, but has othedr facilities in North Carolina, eastern Europe and Asia. Kerouac said the companuy feels it is important to maintain facilities closed toits markets.
Havingb existing facilities in the statew is an economic incentiveto stay, he "Once you've built that leverage, it'xs very hard to buildr an economic model that woulde take those jobs away," he said. But not all manufactureres choose to produce theirwaresz here. in Marlborough reported that revenude rose almost 6 percentto $1.3 billion last year, ranking it 10th on the BBJ'a manufacturing list. But the company does most of its manufacturinggthrough China-based , a company it acquired from in 3Com says it is strategicallgy and financially necessary to outsource much of its but that its Massachusetts operations are stillk strategic assets.
"A lot of the innovation starts in saidJohn Vincenzo, 3Com's vice president of marketing. "It'se a big portion of what we're doing globally." The largest Massachusetts manufacturer, in Waltham, is one of the few companiees that added Massachusetts jobs despitwe a slipin revenue. A companty spokesperson declined to comment on its manufacturing output in the The company has two manufacturing in Andoverand Sudbury. As for the the state's manufacturing sector will likely rely onthe commonwealth' ability to remain a research and development hub, Gilmore said. Tech manufacturere "don't necessarily have to compete on price," he said.
"They compete on technology." Kerouac added, "Massachusetts is nevee going to be the cheapestt place todo manufacturing. Companies rely on the qualityh of education and the sunk cost of existing facilities to outweigthe costs."