Florida manufacturing employment climbed 4.7% from 2022 to 2024 as the Florida Chamber Foundation targets a top-five U.S. ranking for manufacturing jobs by 2030, with two products reaching a statewide contest final.
FloridaCommerce reported the sector added more than 2,700 establishments over the same two-year period. The agency expects manufacturing employment to grow 6% between 2024 and 2028. Florida also placed third nationally for manufacturing establishment count in 2025, FloridaCommerce said.
Data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, distributed through the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis’ FRED service, put Florida’s manufacturing gross domestic product at $85.3 billion in 2025. The annual figure is in current dollars and is not seasonally adjusted.
The Florida Chamber of Commerce and FloridaCommerce selected Northrop Grumman’s E-2D Advanced Hawkeye, a military aircraft associated with St. Johns County, and Arthrex’s TightRope® PRO Implant, associated with Collier County. The initial field topped 100 products, with entries connected to all 67 counties. Mark Wilson, president and CEO of the Florida Chamber of Commerce, said the finalists had “earned the opportunity to compete.”
Northrop Grumman identifies St. Augustine as the site where E-2D aircraft undergo final production, assembly, testing, integration and modification. The company says the U.S. Navy had received 73 E-2Ds from St. Augustine. Arthrex says it developed the implant at its Naples headquarters and makes it at its Ave Maria facility to treat high-ankle sprains involving syndesmotic injuries.
The Florida Chamber Foundation’s Florida 2030 Blueprint also seeks to place Florida among the world’s 10 largest economies by 2030. The foundation said in July that Florida’s $1.8 trillion economy ranked 14th globally.
Chromalloy won the inaugural 2025 contest. Public voting for this year’s competition ended Friday, Oct. 23, and organizers scheduled the winner announcement for Wednesday, Oct. 28, in Orlando.
