Heavy Industry

Northwest Florida is home to several heavy industrial manufacturers. Your company can benefit from the strategic advantages Northwest Florida has in heavy industry, including:

  • Available land, cost-efficient power, and an abundance of water
  • Nearly 800 manufacturers in the region, a manufacturing workforce of 54,000 within a one-hour drive time, and 3,000 separating military personnel each year ready to work for you
  • Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad has access to Class I Rail CSX & Norfolk Southern, and short lines
  • I-10 running from Jacksonville to Los Angeles, also connecting to I-65, I-75, and I-95
  • Three deep-water ports, two of which are Foreign Trade Zones, and access to four additional ports/FTZs

Our laborshed has the following Heavy Industry companies:

  • 37 Ship Building and Repair

  • 6 Plastics Material and Resin Manufacturering
  • 5 Artificial and Synthetic Fibers and Filaments Manufacturing
  • 4 Polystyrene Foam Product Manufacturing

The laborshed has seen significant growth in heavy industrial related jobs over the last five years:

  • 190% growth in All Other Miscellaneous Electrical Equipment and Component Manufacturing jobs
  • 174% growth in Air-Conditioning and Warm Air Heating Equipment and Commercial and Industrial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing jobs
  • 154% growth in Polystyrene Foam Product Manufacturing jobs

Northwest Florida is serviced by two investor-owned electric utilities and four electric membership cooperatives. These companies are:

Investor Owned Companies

Electric Membership Cooperatives through PowerSouth 

While electric rates are nationally competitive, special rates are available for industrial and other large customers.

Florida Gas Transmission Company is the natural gas provider in the region. The company is 100% owned by Citrus Corp — a joint venture between Kinder Morgan, Inc. and Energy Transfer. The company’s current infrastructure and capability include:

  • 5,500-mile pipeline system with extensive access to diverse natural gas supply sources
  • A supply capability of 2.3 Bcf/day of natural gas to the rapidly growing Florida peninsula

Business Cost Advantages

Northwest Florida will benefit from $1.5 billion in economic development enhancements, such as workforce training and infrastructure, over the next 15 years. Additionally, Florida ranks among the best states for business because of its pro-business tax policies and competitive cost of doing business.

Your company can benefit from inducements to help offset initial costs when locating a new or expanding your existing business in Northwest Florida. Moreover, your business dollars go further given the state's limited corporate taxes and your employees benefit from 0% state personal income tax.

Learn more about incentives avilable with a Northwest Florida location.

 

TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE

Port Panama City, with its six deep-water berths, Foreign Trade Zone status, and 200-acre Intermodal Distribution Center, is a significant regional asset, as is the Port of Pensacola. These assets, coupled with the new 4,000-acre Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport near Panama City in Bay County, make Northwest Florida an ideal hub for international trade.  Learn more about Northwest Florida’s transportation infrastructure.

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Many of our R&D facilities in the region support heavy industry and manufacturing-related innovations, such as:

  • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
  • Institute for Human and Machine Cognition
  • Sea3D

Read more about our R&D and innovation assets…


Featured Companies

LandrumHR

LandrumHR, headquartered in Downtown Pensacola, is a fully-certified Professional Employer Organization (PEO). They manage human resources needs for 1,800 businesses in 44 states wtih services ranging from payroll and taxes to medical benefits to staffing and recruiting.

Navy Federal Credit Union

Navy Federal employs more than 8,000 people at their Pensacola operations campus. Their workplace has been recognized among "best places to work" by Fortune, Forbes, and Computerworld.

The St. Joe Company

The St. Joe Company is a Northwest Florida based real estate developer and asset manager. The Company focuses on thoughtfully planned destinations to live, work, play, shop, and vacation near the region's beautiful white sand beaches. View the interactive map below for an overview of our current developments and assets.

 

CONTACT US

Florida’s Great Northwest is here to provide you the practical, on-the-ground resources and support you need for your business location/expansion project. From incentives to site selection to workforce development, we’ve got the expertise and connections to help your business be even more competitive with a Northwest Florida location.

Contact Us