The Manufacturing sector comprises establishments engaged in the mechanical, physical, or chemical transformation of materials, substances, or components into new products. The assembling of component parts of manufactured products is considered manufacturing, except in cases where the activity is appropriately classified in Sector 23, Construction.

Establishments in the Manufacturing sector are often described as plants, factories, or mills and characteristically use power-driven machines and materials-handling equipment. However, establishments that transform materials or substances into new products by hand or in the worker's home and those engaged in selling to the general public products made on the same premises from which they are sold, such as bakeries, candy stores, and custom tailors, may also be included in this sector. Manufacturing establishments may process materials or may contract with other establishments to process their materials for them. Both types of establishments are included in manufacturing.

While most of the changes affecting the manufacturing sector were within the sector, this sector now excludes industries which were previously within the scope of manufacturing and includes others that were not in manufacturing. Prominent among the industries that are excluded from manufacturing are logging and portions of publishing. Prominent among the industries that are now included in manufacturing are bakeries, candy stores where candy is made on the premises, custom tailors, makers of custom draperies, and tire retreading.

Another change resulting from the conversion to NAICS is that data for manufacturing auxiliary establishments are not included with the manufacturing data; these establishments are now classified in a particular NAICS industry based on the function of the auxiliary establishment. See section on "Auxiliaries" for additional explanation of the treatment of auxiliary establishments in the 1992 and 1997 Economic Censuses.

The Economic Census publishes data for the manufacturing sector for the U.S., states, counties, places, and metropolitan areas, and, on CD-ROM only, for ZIP codes.

The Census of Manufactures is updated by:

• Annual Survey of Manufactures
• Current Industrial Reports
• Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders (M3)
• Manufacturing and Trade Inventories and Sales
• Other Surveys and Publications
• County Business Patterns
  County Business Patterns is an annual series that provides subnational economic data by industry. The series is useful for studying the economic activity of small areas; analyzing economic changes over time; and as a benchmark for statistical series, surveys, and databases between economic censuses. This series has been published annually since 1964 and at irregular intervals dating back to 1946. The comparability of data over time may be affected by definitional changes in establishments, activity status, and industrial classifications.