North Carolina is able to attract and grow aerospace and military defense companies throughout all geographical areas of the state largely because the industry is a good fit with the state’s manufacturing tradition, existing workforce, growing population, training programs and university-based research. 

North Carolina is an established, innovative and growing center for Aerospace, Aviation and Military Defense.

• North Carolina became the launch pad for American aviation in 1903 with the First Flight of Orville and Wilbur Wright
• North Carolina has more than 160 aerospace and aviation companies engaged in manufacturing and service and employs more than 13,000 skilled workers
• Seven of the 10 largest global air defense companies have operations in North Carolina including Boeing, General Dynamics, GE, L-3 Communications, Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman and Raytheon
• There are nearly 200 companies in North Carolina that supply the aerospace industry by manufacturing products ranging from carbon and graphite products to fabricated metal products
• North Carolina has four international airports, 74 publicly-owned airports and 300 privately-owned airports in the state
• North Carolina is the first state in the nation to have statewide Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast (ADS-B) coverage
• More than 25 million passengers fly to and from North Carolina and more than 800 million pounds of air freight originate annually in the state
• With over 100,000 active duty personnel at bases in North Carolina, military personnel transitioning out of the service represent a potential pool of talented, educated and disciplined employees

For more information, download the  North Carolina Aerospace and Aviation Industry Brochure or the   North Carolina Military/Defense Contractors profile.

North Carolina is home to more than 160 companies in the motor vehicle parts industry employing more than 17,000 people.  34 of the top 150 North American OEM suppliers have facilities in the state and 19 of those have more than one facility. 

The strengths of North Carolina's Automotive cluster include:

• Home to several leading truck manufacturers including Daimler, Mack and Volvo Trucks
• Home to the headquarters of two leading bus manufacturers - Daimler and Thomas Built Buses
• Home to leading heavy equipment manufacturers including Caterpillar and John Deere
• Home to leading racing and motor sports teams including 82% of Sprint Cup Teams, 72% of Nationwide Series Teams and 55% of Craftsman Truck Series Teams

North Carolina’s auto workers perform a variety of jobs for major manufacturers:

• Assemble school and transit buses for Thomas Built Buses.
• Manufacture heavy duty trucks for Daimler Trucks, formerly Freightliner.
• Build transmissions for AW North Carolina Inc.
• Produce construction machinery for Caterpillar.
• Make suspension components for ZF Lemforder.
• Assemble small engines for lawn mowers and power equipment for Honda Power Equipment Manufacturing.
• Manufacture power train equipment for Getrag Corp.
• Design high-performance race vehicles for NASCAR championship winners.

For more information, download the  North Carolina Automotive, Truck and Heavy Equipment Brochure.

North Carolina is one of the few states offering a unique, comprehensive environment for biotechnology firms where entrepreneurs can take an idea conceived in a laboratory, refine the product, produce and test it through the clinical trial phases and manufacture and distribute to global markets.

North Carolina has the third largest biotechnology industry in the nation with more than 520 bioscience companies, contract research organizations and device and life science-related companies. More than 56,000 workers, with skill sets ranging from bioprocess technicians to Ph.Ds including some are employed by this sector.  Among the state’s largest biotech and pharmaceutical firms are GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Bayer, Biogen IDEC, Diosynth, Novo Nordisk, Wyeth and Baxter.

To help meet the industry’s ongoing need for trained professionals, we have created the country’s first comprehensive biotechnology training program that partners industry, government and academia through the North Carolina Biosciences Organization.

For more information, download the  North Carolina Biotechnology, Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences Brochure and/or watch the video "Biotechnology Works in North Carolina."

Banking and finance comprise one of North Carolina’s largest economic sectors, employing nearly 200,000 workers at over 1,700 firms.  Operations span the full range of mortgage and insurance centers, headquarters, back-office environments, global business centers and customer service centers.

Currently, there are more than 120 banks operating more than 1,800 branches in the state.  Our banking and finance operations have earned these distinctions:

• The second largest financial center in the nation.
• Headquarters for three of the nation’s 15 largest banks: Bank of America and Wachovia in Charlotte and BB&T in Winston-Salem.
• Home to one of the largest family-controlled banks: Raleigh-based First Citizens.
• Home to several foreign banks including the Royal Bank of Canada operating as RBC Centura.

More than 140 call centers are operating in North Carolina in fields that range from financial services to technical support to direct marketing.

For more information, download the  North Carolina Business and Financial Services Industry Brochure.

More than 550 U.S. and international companies in North Carolina provide a solid base for manufacturing materials, equipment, parts and molds. Our innovative and growing polymers industry stakes claims to:

• The seventh largest plastics manufacturing state in the nation for shipments.
• The eighth largest in plastics industry employment in the nation.
• Plastic and rubber is third largest export industry in North Carolina.
• Chemicals is sixth largest export industry in the state.

Alcatel, Americhem DuPont, GE-Polymerland, INVISTA, Kimberly Clark, Owens-Illinois, Southeastern Container, Southern Film Extruders and Wellman are among the state’s largest plastic, rubber and chemical related facilities.

Our state programs meet workforce needs ranging from plastics technicians to chemical engineers.  Opportunities span engineering, chemistry and related degree programs offered at the state’s colleges and universities, to specialized plastics training programs with the North Carolina Community College System including:

• N.C. Community College Plastics Curriculum Standards
• The Materials Testing Lab at Isothermal Community College
• The Polymers Center of Excellence 
• The Plastics Injection Molding Training Program at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College

For more information, download the  North Carolina Plastics, Rubber, and Related Chemicals Industry Brochure.

North Carolina is strongly committed to developing and growing a green energy economy.  The state has a long history of protecting its natural and environmental resources.  A large network of suppliers in the green economy coupled with strong legislative support, at the state and local levels, and available research assets creates an environment where green energy companies will receive the support and assistance to thrive.  

We are home to an existing and potential green economy.

Existing

• More than 900 companies currently participate in the renewable energy supply chain
• In the inaugural year of the Green Business Fund, 85 applications were received requesting more than nearly $7 million in funding to support expansion into green markets

Natural Resources to Support Green Energy

• Home to more than 1,650 W of hydropower capacity and there are 93 additional sites with the potential to generate hydropower
• Wind potential is strongest 1 to 2 miles off the coast and in the sounds, but also strong in the mountains
• A photovoltaic system can get a yearly average of 5 to 6.4 hours per day of sun exposure depending on whether it is fixed or tracking the sun and can produce electricity about 19 percent of the year without any added fuel costs
• A leading producer of both hogs and poultry which provides large supplies of waste for biomass production

Policy/Legislative Support

• The first state in the southeastern U.S. to initiate a Renewable Portfolio Standard
• N.C. Wind Ordinance legislation to permit wind facilities. Clears the way for the development of wind farms off North Carolina's Outer Continental Shelf
• No city ordinances, county ordinances or deed restrictions, covenants and other similar agreements can prohibit nor have the effect of prohibiting the installation of energy devices that are based on the use of renewable resources
• Biodiesel produced by an individual for personal use in a private passenger vehicle is exempt from motor fuel excise tax

North Carolina is a major center for telecommunications, networking and software development with 3,000 IT companies employing more than 100,000 highly skilled workers.

IBM has its largest IT presence in the world in North Carolina.  Cisco's second largest campus is in Research Triangle Park, and Microsoft's second largest domestic presence is in Charlotte. Other major players that have been drawn by North Carolina’s knowledge workers are:

• Cree
• Dell
• Google
• Lenovo
• Red Hat
• RFMD
• SAS

Specialized resources provide an atmosphere for innovation including:

• Nine research universities with three excellent engineering schools.
• The North Carolina Technology Association dedicated to growing and strengthening the IT industry.
• The Charlotte Research Institute located on the UNC-Charlotte Campus.
• The North Carolina Council for Entrepreneurial Development founded to stimulate the creation and growth of high impact companies.

For more information, download the  North Carolina Information and Communications Technology Industry Sector Brochure.

For specific information on Data Centers, download the  North Carolina Data Center Brochure.

Textile manufacturers in North Carolina have emerged as high-tech innovators and established the state as a world leader in nonwoven textiles with engineered fabrics produced through sophisticated processes.

Our growing center for textile manufacturers has garnered these accolades:

• Home to over 1,500 textile complex facilities employing over 180,000 people with a $2.8 billion payroll.
• 185 of these companies are headquartered in North Carolina.
• Over $35 billion in annual revenues.
• 144 new or expanded textile operations since 2003.
• #1 textile mill employer in the nation.
• #4 apparel producer in the nation.
• #1 nonwoven roll goods producer in the nation.
• #1 yarn producer in the nation with many of the world’s largest companies.
• Home to 4 of the top 5 suppliers of home textiles.

Some 35 nonwoven manufacturing firms are located in the state with nearly $3 billion in annual sales. German-owned Freudenberg, the world’s largest producer of nonwovens has a large plant that produces its Novolon product line, which was first developed at N.C. State University. Other newcomers include Japan’s Livedo Corp., Jacob Holm Industries of Switzerland and two Israeli firms: N.R. Spuntech Industries and AFG Wipes.  Start-ups like 3Tex that license technology from universities are also common.

We offer resources to support future growth and expansion such as:

• The American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists, the world's leading not-for-profit professional association for the textile design, materials, processing, and testing industries.
• The Association of Nonwoven Fabrics Industry (INDA) promoting the growth and profitability of the nonwovens/engineered fabrics industry.
• The College of Textiles at N.C. State University, recognized as the world leader in textile education, research and industry support.
• Cotton Inc. dedicated to improving and expanding markets for cotton.
• The Hosiery Technology Center assisting companies with research and development projects.
• The Institute of Textile Technology at N.C. State University educating graduate students in the theory and practice of textile technology, carrying out research in the field, and providing a center of information to keep the industry abreast of international developments in textiles.
• The 58-campus N.C. Community College System's customized training programs.
• The Nonwovens Cooperative Research Center at N.C. State University devoted to advancing the knowledge in nonwoven technologies.
• The Textile/Clothing Technology Corporation ([TC]2) operating a short-cycle apparel and related sewn products production facility in Cary, N.C. that serves as a demonstration center for leading edge technologies and a research facility for emerging technologies and business processes in the industry.
• Textile Extension Education Services at N.C. State University with short courses ranging from Basic Textiles to Six Sigma.
• The Textile Protection and Comfort Center at N.C. State University incorporating a comprehensive infrastructure of equipment and personnel to address the need for integrated research on all aspects of the protection and comfort of clothing. 
• The Textile Technology Center with testing, product prototyping and sample production services.

For more information, download the  North Carolina Textile, Apparel, Hosiery, and Textile Machinery Brochure and/or  N.C. Textile and Apparel Resource Guide.

You can also visit www.NCTextileConnect.com.  NC Textile Connect includes information on textile industry events, statistics, demographics, resources and products and comes from academic, industry and government agencies.  Companies can create their own profiles, update their existing ones, and search for needed business contacts.  The website is a collaborative effort between NC State University’s College of Textiles and the NC Department of Commerce.

The Department of Commerce co-sponsored a conference Nov. 10, 2009, on the Military/Performance Textiles field. See the conference presentations and materials.