The Milken Institute recently published their report, "North America’s High-Tech Economy: The Geography of Knowledge-Based Industries." Says Ross DeVol, Director of Regional Economics at the Institute and author of the report: “High-tech industries are an important and sustaining anchor for regions to survive the slump and to rebuild their economies around high-wage jobs.”
While many well-known tech centers rank at the top of their high-tech metros report, such as Silicon Valley, Seattle, Cambridge and Washington, DC, surprising turnaround stories such as Kalamazoo, MI, and Baja, CA, were also documented. Kalamazoo worked hard to retain its human capital and has become a top center for medical equipment manufacturing. Rust-belt icon Scranton-Wilkes Barre, PA ranks 3rd in audio and video equipment manufacturing and showed employment growth of at least double the North American average for the period 2003 to 2007.
So yes, there is a future for manufacturing...But primarily high-tech, high-skilled manufacturing. This is an area in which West Virginia, through recent and (hopefully) future investments in high-tech skill development through our Community and Technical Colleges, in addition to four-year schools, can begin to grow and thrive. In many ways, "creative economy" principles have worked their way into "old" economy industries as a way to generate growth. But it requires a much greater emphasis on innovation, planning and improved skills.
According to our friends at TechConnect, WV's tech-based economic development advocacy group, where do West Virginia cities rank on the list according to tech-related employment and wages?
Charleston ... 189
Hagerstown-Martinsburg ... 246
Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna ... 272
Huntington-Ashland ... 289
Morgantown ... 335 (this is surprising.....)
Weirton-Steubenville ... 347
Wheeling ... 357
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