Kentucky manufacturing fact sheet
THE FACTORY CENSUS, Q3 2026 · FACTORYREGISTRY RESEARCH · SNAPSHOT AUG 2026
As of AUG 2026, FactoryRegistry lists 4,356 manufacturing facilities in Kentucky, of which 1,527 (35.1%) carry a recent operating signal. That is 94.94 facilities per 100,000 residents.
Full census, Q3 2026 · Kentucky in the registry
Top counties
| COUNTY | FACILITIES |
|---|---|
| Jefferson | 674 |
| Boone | 222 |
| Fayette | 205 |
| Warren | 130 |
| Hardin | 106 |
| Daviess | 101 |
| Kenton | 89 |
| Madison | 82 |
| Christian | 79 |
| Henderson | 76 |
Leading industries
| SUBSECTOR | FACILITIES |
|---|---|
| 332 Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing | 731 |
| 327 Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing | 462 |
| 336 Transportation Equipment Manufacturing | 414 |
| 325 Chemical Manufacturing | 367 |
| 321 Wood Product Manufacturing | 362 |
Largest listed employers
| FACILITY | CITY | EMPLOYEES |
|---|---|---|
| 102-pl001 | Bowling Green | 500+ |
| Abc Automotive Systems INC | London | 500+ |
| Adient | Georgetown | 500+ |
| Aisan Industry Kentucky | Mount Sterling | 500+ |
| Akebono Elizabethtown | Elizabethtown | 500+ |
| Albany Plant | Albany | 500+ |
| Alltech INC | Nicholasville | 500+ |
| American Fuji Seal | Bardstown | 500+ |
| Appliance Park | Louisville | 500+ |
| AS - Automotive Steering | Florence | 500+ |
Ranked by reported employment band. Facilities whose sources report no band are not listed here.
Coverage
The registry lists 4,356 facilities in Kentucky against a BLS QCEW benchmark of 7,147 manufacturing establishments (2024) — coverage of 60.9%. The benchmark is a floor: QCEW counts establishments covered by unemployment insurance and so excludes most sole proprietors and some contract operations. The real number of manufacturing sites is therefore higher than the benchmark, and this percentage overstates coverage rather than understating it. Where it exceeds 100%, the registry lists more sites than QCEW counts establishments — which is expected in states with many small or single-person operations, and is also where duplicate listings would show up first.
FactoryRegistry Research, The Factory Census, Q3 2026 — factoryregistry.com/census/2026-q3/ky · press@factoryregistry.com