Machining and Machinery

Revenue in the U.S. machine tools market is expected to grow at a 3.38 percent compound annual growth rate through 2029, according to the research group Mordor Intelligence. Market size is expected to increase from $12.25 billion in 2024 to $14.46 billion by 2029. Reasons for this steady growth include stable spending in the industry, and ongoing demand for metal-forming machine tools by the aerospace, automobile, and defense sectors in the U.S.

The state of the machining and machinery industry is closely tied to economic conditions, but even when the economy improves, there seems to be a lag time of about one year before the shipments and employment in the industry catch up. Industry analysts also say that economic uncertainty affects manufacturing executives who must decide whether to invest in new machinery. They cite several factors that may dim prospects for increased factory capital spending, including a crunch in credit that may shrink the money for capital loans that would be used to purchase new machinery, a shortage of workers for high-skill positions, declining productivity and rising labor costs, ageing manufacturing infrastructure, and growing competition from emerging economies.

One development that is affecting employment opportunities for some workers in the machining industry is automation, although automation does create some machinist jobs in the area of machine repair, supervision, and maintenance. The manufacturing industry has been revolutionized by highly productive, computer-controlled machining and turning centers that change their own tools; transfer machines that completely machine, assemble, and test mass-produced products; and innovative metal removal and forming systems. Advanced robots and robotic equipment are becoming more common and are being used in many areas where the work is tedious, repetitious, or dangerous. Automated inspection technology—such as electronic sensors, cameras, X-rays, lasers, and artificial intelligence—is increasingly being used to test and inspect parts during production.

The use of computers and automated equipment impacts employment opportunities for some machine operators and layout workers. Employment of machinists is projected to grow by only 2 percent from 2023 to 2033, according to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). Despite this, opportunities for machinists should be good because the field is large, many people retire or leave the field for other reasons each year, and there is a shortage of young people who want to enter the field. Additionally, even if actual production levels fall, machinists are still needed to repair, monitor, and control expensive automated equipment. Employment for machinists is expected to be strongest in the following sectors through 2033:

• beverage manufacturing: +27.7 percent
• electrical equipment, appliance, and component manufacturing: +20.9 percent
• semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing: +14.0 percent
• food manufacturing: +7.5 percent
• medical equipment and supplies manufacturing: +7.2 percent

The DOL says that "employment of tool and die makers is expected to decline as advances in automation, including CNC machine tools, reduce demand for certain tasks that these workers do, such as programming how parts fit together."

According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, employment of industrial machinery mechanics, machinery maintenance workers, and millwrights is expected to grow by 15 percent from 2023 through 2033. This is much faster than the average for all careers. Some employment sectors that will experience especially strong growth include:

• beverage manufacturing: +53.3 percent
• electrical equipment, appliance, and component manufacturing: +41.7 percent
• semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing: +36.8 percent
• medical equipment and supplies manufacturing: +28.6 percent
• plastics and rubber products manufacturing: +27.3 percent
• motor vehicle manufacturing: +27.2 percent
• pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing: +26.6 percent

The DOL predicts that job opportunities should be good due to the increased numbers of automated production processes that require the supervision of skilled industrial machinery mechanics, machinery maintenance workers, and millwrights and a relative lack of candidates entering training programs. Employers value the skills that these workers bring to manufacturing, as they are often versatile and able to handle a large number of contingencies. For this reason, skilled machine workers will be in demand for the foreseeable future.

Engineers who work in machining and machinery should continue to have good opportunities because they provide key design, development, and innovation skills to the industry.

The DOL reported that the median annual wage for machinists was $54,600 in May 2023. Industrial machinery mechanics earned $63,690, and millwrights received $64,310. Manufacturing engineers earned average salaries of $94,657 in 2024, according to ZipRecruiter.com. The median salary for all workers was $48,060 in 2023, according to the DOL.

In 2023, women comprised only 6.3 percent of machinists and 3.9 percent of industrial machinery mechanics, according to the DOL. This percentage is significantly lower than their representation (about 47 percent) in the U.S. workforce. Industry organizations—such as Women in Manufacturing—are working to encourage more women to enter the field.