Reinventing Manufacturing

California Manufacturing Regional Clusters Analysis
Bay Area
The Bay Area—defined as Alameda, Contra Costa,
Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara,
Solano, and Sonoma Counties—is a leading technology
hub. The region’s rich innovation ecosystem is based
on a high-skilled workforce, world-class universities and
research labs, robust capital investment platforms and
dense networks that enable the movement of people
and ideas. Throughout the development of its innovation
economy, the co-location of R&D and production
has been a source of strength, as the seamless collaboration
between engineering production teams could
speed the iterative process of innovation. After the loss
of semiconductor fabs and other production facilities
in the 1990s and 2000s, manufacturing in the region is
refinding its roots.
Manufacturing as a whole accounted for 8.4 percent
of Bay Area employment in 2014. Although the Bay
Area is one of the most expensive regions of the state,
many manufacturers are there because they are working
closely with the region’s technology companies. Not only
are new, cutting edge products developed in the region,
but new tools for production are also developed there.
Localized supply chains that have formed around subsectors,
such as energy-efficient lighting, healthcare devices,
and automotive vehicles, have supported the growth of
manufacturing and have enabled high-value production
to occur in close proximity to research activities.
In 2014, the Bay Area’s 293,847 manufacturing jobs
made up 23.6 percent of manufacturing employment
in California. These jobs are heavily concentrated in the
Computer & Electronic Products Manufacturing sector,
which constituted 47.4 percent of the Bay Area’s manufacturing
employment with 139,271 jobs in 2014.
The Computer & Electronic Products Manufacturing
sector also accounted for 19.1 percent of Bay Area
Bay Area Manufacturing Employment Change by Sector, 2010–2014
Manufacturing Sector Employment Size
160,000
140,000
120,000
100,000
80,000
Computers & Electronics
Wood & Paper
Medical
Equipment
Textiles
60,000
Pharmaceutical
& Medicine
40,000
Fabricated Food
Metals Beverages
Nonmetallic
Chemicals
Minerals
Petroleum Miscellaneous
Machinery
20,000
Transportation
& Coal
Primary
Equipment
Plastics Metal
Furniture
0
Printing
-50% -40% -30% -20% -10% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
Data Source: Quarterly Census of Employment & Wages, California EDD
Analysis: Bay Area Council Economic Institute
Employment Change from 2010 to 2014
71