Tennessee manufacturing fact sheet
THE FACTORY CENSUS, Q3 2026 · FACTORYREGISTRY RESEARCH · SNAPSHOT AUG 2026
As of AUG 2026, FactoryRegistry lists 5,662 manufacturing facilities in Tennessee, of which 2,331 (41.2%) carry a recent operating signal. That is 78.34 facilities per 100,000 residents.
Full census, Q3 2026 · Tennessee in the registry
Top counties
| COUNTY | FACILITIES |
|---|---|
| Davidson | 616 |
| Shelby | 580 |
| Hamilton | 441 |
| Knox | 305 |
| Rutherford | 227 |
| Sumner | 135 |
| Madison | 135 |
| Sullivan | 108 |
| Wilson | 103 |
| Williamson | 101 |
Leading industries
| SUBSECTOR | FACILITIES |
|---|---|
| 332 Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing | 1,052 |
| 333 Machinery Manufacturing | 538 |
| 325 Chemical Manufacturing | 522 |
| 336 Transportation Equipment Manufacturing | 505 |
| 327 Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing | 410 |
Largest listed employers
| FACILITY | CITY | EMPLOYEES |
|---|---|---|
| Adient Murfreesboro | Murfreesboro | 500+ |
| AO Smith Fairview Ave | Johnson City | 500+ |
| A.O. Smith Manufacturing Plant | Ashland City | 500+ |
| Astec Jerome | Chattanooga | 500+ |
| Bodine Aluminum, Inc.- Jackson | Jackson | 500+ |
| Bonnell Aluminum, Inc. - Carthage | Carthage | 500+ |
| BU 1 - Engine Systems and Components : BU-1 Pistons Morristown | Morristown | 500+ |
| Carrier Corporation (Collierville) | Collierville | 500+ |
| Clv | Cleveland | 500+ |
| Commercial HVAC - Americas : MFG-Clarksville, TN-USA | Clarksville | 500+ |
Ranked by reported employment band. Facilities whose sources report no band are not listed here.
Coverage
The registry lists 5,662 facilities in Tennessee against a BLS QCEW benchmark of 9,652 manufacturing establishments (2024) — coverage of 58.7%. 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/tn · press@factoryregistry.com