Manufacturers Aren't Waiting for the Election. They're Already Planning for 2027.

As Americans head to the polls Tuesday, manufacturers are making decisions that will shape their operations well beyond the next election cycle. And despite the uncertainty surrounding Washington, many aren't waiting for the results.

According to Bill Pellino, national manufacturing industry leader at BDO, the political calendar isn't driving the conversations he's having with industrial executives.

"I'm not really hearing anyone, honestly, even talking about how things are going to change with elections," Pellino told Location Decision in an Election Day interview.

Instead, executives are wrestling with more immediate concerns: high energy and material costs, pressure on margins, workforce shortages and how to invest in productivity without compromising profitability.

Recent economic data supports the picture of an industry continuing to move forward. The Institute for Supply Management's October manufacturing report, released Monday, showed its Purchasing Managers' Index rising to 55.5, up from 54.5 in September and marking the sector's 10th consecutive month of expansion.

New orders continued growing, and production reached its highest index reading since November 2021. The prices index eased to 75.2 from 77.9 in September but remained elevated, signaling continued pressure from rising input costs.

"I don't necessarily think it's the election that's going to make a lot of the changes," Pellino said.

Pellino describes a K-shaped manufacturing economy, with investment and demand increasingly concentrated in industries tied to national priorities.

Aerospace, defense, energy and critical infrastructure manufacturers are experiencing strong activity, supported by investment flowing through their broader supplier ecosystems.

The announcements tracked by Location Decision illustrate that momentum.

In October, Lockheed Martin announced a $300 million expansion of advanced munitions manufacturing in Grand Prairie, Texas. Honeywell Aerospace followed with plans for a $500 million, 300,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Tempe, Arizona, expected to create approximately 600 jobs.

In Arkansas, Hanwha Defense USA announced plans in September for a $2.2 billion munitions manufacturing campus at Pine Bluff Arsenal, with up to 400 jobs anticipated over seven years.

Together, those three projects represent $3 billion in announced capital investment, although the spending will occur over different timelines.

But companies operating outside those high-growth sectors face a different reality.

"They're not necessarily growing, they're not pulling back, but they're also a little bit more cautious on where they can invest those dollars," Pellino said.

That doesn't mean manufacturers in slower-growing sectors have stopped investing. Rather, their priorities differ.

Companies facing strong demand may need to expand production capacity quickly to fulfill orders. Others are investing more selectively, seeking efficiencies that can offset rising costs without forcing price increases that customers might resist.

For economic developers competing for industrial investment, Pellino sees workforce availability becoming an increasingly important consideration.

While supply chain disruptions and regulatory uncertainty dominated discussions in recent years, manufacturers are again confronting a familiar problem: finding enough qualified workers.

And it's not simply a question of national labor supply.

"It's not just the number of workers; it's the right workers at the right location," Pellino said.

The latest ISM report underscores the complexity. Its manufacturing employment index registered 52.4 in October, indicating continued expansion, though at a slightly slower pace than September. Meanwhile, the report found that eight manufacturing industries reported employment growth, while five reported declines.

Advanced manufacturing increasingly requires employees with specialized technical capabilities, including workers who can operate sophisticated equipment and automated production systems.

Manufacturers are responding through partnerships with community colleges, trade organizations and workforce development institutions.

Automation is another part of that response. Honeywell's planned Tempe facility, for example, will incorporate modular robotics, automated inspection and digital production systems.

For communities seeking new facilities, those investments reinforce the importance of developing a workforce capable of supporting increasingly sophisticated industrial operations.

Pellino believes manufacturers have fundamentally changed how they respond to uncertainty.

The pandemic, geopolitical disruptions and repeated supply chain shocks forced companies to reconsider sourcing, operating footprints and production strategies.

But the industry's response has evolved beyond simply surviving disruptions.

"We've moved beyond just absorption of the disruption to really, you know, anticipating it and being able to react very quickly," he said.

That agility is becoming a competitive advantage.

For manufacturers preparing for 2027, Pellino recommends concentrating resources on the customers and products responsible for the greatest share of revenue and profitability.

Understanding those relationships, he argues, can help executives free up resources for investment while managing costs they cannot control.

The result is an industrial economy that remains active, even if its growth is uneven.

Some manufacturers are scaling rapidly to meet demand from aerospace, defense and infrastructure customers. Others are retooling existing operations, investing in automation and carefully managing margins.

Either way, the decisions are already underway.

For economic developers and site selectors, the implications extend beyond Tuesday's election results. The next wave of industrial competitiveness may depend as much on workforce readiness and existing manufacturers' productivity as on the announcement of another billion-dollar factory.