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Manufacturing Scorecard

Categories (All States)

  • Manufacturing Industry Health
  • Logistics Industry Health
  • Human Capital
  • Worker Benefit Costs
  • Tax Climate
  • Expected Liability Gap
  • Global Reach
  • Sector Diversification
  • Productivity and Innovation

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  • About
  • Methodology
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Related Studies (PDF)

  • Manufacturing & Logistics: A Generation of Volatility & Growth (2017)
  • Advanced Manufacturing in the United States (2016)
  • The Myth and the Reality of Manufacturing in America (2017)
  • Manufacturing and Labor Market Frictions (2014)
  • Manufacturing Productivity Through the Great Recession (2013)

About Arkansas

Arkansas has a population of 2,937,979. The manufacturing industry is 8.5% of the state economy. The total personal income in Arkansas is $99,933,270,000 and earnings from manufacturing total $8,510,384,000.

Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2011

Arkansas

Click on a category to view state performance in that category

'09 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20
C C+ C+ C C C C C C C+ C C Manufacturing Industry Health
B C+ C C C C C C C C C C Logistics Industry Health
D D- D- D F D- D- D D- D D D Human Capital
B B+ A A A A A A A A A A Worker Benefit Costs
C D D+ C C- C- D F D- D- F D- Tax Climate
n/a n/a n/a C C C D D C C C C Expected Liability Gap
C C+ C- C C C- C C D+ D+ D+ D Global Reach
n/a C C C C+ C+ C+ C+ C C C C Sector Diversification
D+ F F F F F F D F F F F Productivity and Innovation

About Manufacturing Industry Health

Manufacturing is the production of both consumer durable goods (products that last at least 5-10 years) and consumer non-durable goods (products that are consumed after use). Location decisions for manufacturing firms generally depend on local factors such as the quality and availability of the labor force, transportation infrastructure, non-wage labor costs, access to innovative technologies, and the cost of doing business.

Sources: U.S. Department of the Census and Bureau of Economic Analysis.

GPA Key: 4 = A; 3 = B; 2 = C; 1 = D; 0 = F

About Logistics Industry Health

Logistics includes the ability to move, store, and distribute manufactured goods. Logistics firms depend upon many of the same factors as manufacturing firms in their location decision, but there is a more complex interplay between local conditions and the existing or planned transportation networks of roads, railroads, waterways, and airports.

Sources: U.S. Department of the Census, Bureau of Economic Analysis, and U.S. Department of Transportation Center for Transportation Statistics.

GPA Key: 4 = A; 3 = B; 2 = C; 1 = D; 0 = F

About Human Capital

No factor matters more to businesses than the quality and availability of labor. Workers are the source of most innovation and process improvements that distinguish successful firms from those that are not successful. Human capital (especially quality of educational background) is the most important factor in firm location decisions.

Sources: National Center for Educational Statistics and U.S. Department of the Census.

GPA Key: 4 = A; 3 = B; 2 = C; 1 = D; 0 = F

About Worker Benefit Costs

Non-wage labor costs represent an increasingly important part of total business costs. Benefits range from a variety of health care issues to liability and casualty insurance, workers’ compensation, and other costs including retirement and other fringe benefits.

Sources: American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), Bureau of Economic Analysis, IMPLAN, and authors’ calculations.

GPA Key: 4 = A; 3 = B; 2 = C; 1 = D; 0 = F

About Tax Climate

Business taxes, individual income taxes (both on workers and small business), sales, unemployment, insurance and property taxes all play a role in assessing regions for a potential employer location.

Sources: Tax Foundation and U.S. Internal Revenue Service.

GPA Key: 4 = A; 3 = B; 2 = C; 1 = D; 0 = F

About Expected Liability Gap

Many states have failed to provide a direct funding stream to bond obligations or fully fund pension plans, leading to unfunded bond and pension liabilities. These unfunded liabilities represent an expected state fiscal liability gap, which is a good indicator of the direction of future taxes and public services.

Sources: Boston College Center for Retirement Research, U.S. Department of the Census 2012 Statistical Abstract, and Bureau of Economic Analysis.

GPA Key: 4 = A; 3 = B; 2 = C; 1 = D; 0 = F

About Global Reach

The level of international trade—in both exports and imports—is a robust measure of the region’s competitiveness in the production, movement and distribution of consumer durable and non-durable goods. Both firms and regional governments focus considerable effort at improving ties with foreign firms. How well this is done is an important predictor of the health of state manufacturing and logistics sectors into the future.

Sources: U.S. Department of Commerce International Trade Administration and Bureau of Economic Analysis.

GPA Key: 4 = A; 3 = B; 2 = C; 1 = D; 0 = F

About Sector Diversification

States that concentrate their manufacturing activity in a single sector are more vulnerable to changes within that specific sector, including changes in employment and income as demand for specific goods change. Policies that seek to diversify the economy are typically pursued in concert with efforts to strengthen the supply chain of existing industries.

Sources: Bureau of Economic Analysis, North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS), and authors’ calculations.

GPA Key: 4 = A; 3 = B; 2 = C; 1 = D; 0 = F

About Productivity and Innovation

Though innovations and inventions are aggressively sought from across the globe, the presence of local talent in these areas through access to university laboratories and non-profit research activities plays an important role in location decisions by manufacturers.

Sources: Census of Manufacturers, National Science Foundation, and U.S. Patent Office.

GPA Key: 4 = A; 3 = B; 2 = C; 1 = D; 0 = F


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