Signature Franchises

IndustryWeek's signature franchises attract manufacturing executives, because they are go-to resources for benchmarking their operations against others'. The franchises provide leaders with a litmus test to measure operational success and help them to identify what services and equipment they need to achieve excellence.

IW Best Plants
January

The IW Best Plants program annually recognizes 10 plants from across North America for their best practices in employee motivation, inventory management, quality and other key performance indicators. IW spotlights the 10 winners and their strategies for continuous improvement in this popular special series of articles. The IW Best Plants program is an institution in manufacturing, offering a benchmarking template for other companies to measure their performances against. This special feature also offers a preview of the 2009 IW Best Plants Conference, to be held April 27-29 in Nashville.

IW Salary Survey
March

This feature is much more than just a look at dollars-and-cents and pay stubs, as it examines job satisfaction, workforce and workplace issues, managerial challenges and geographical comparisons. In addition, it addresses the leadership role that manufacturing professionals play in guiding the management and success of their companies.

IW 50 Best Manufacturing Companies
June

Here’s the chance for industry leaders to see how they rank in the battle for continuous improvement.  This IW franchise is the definitive operational excellence report card of the nation’s largest, publicly-held manufacturing companies. This annual feature looks at and evaluates a combination of critical metrics and reports which companies do it better than everyone else.

The IndustryWeek U.S. 500
June

The only one of its kind and one of IW’s most popular features, the IW U.S. 500 annual report ranks the 500 largest publicly held manufacturing companies in the United States by annual revenue, net income, profit margin and revenue growth percentage for each manufacturer on the list.

The IW Global 1000
July

The IW 1000 is one of IndustryWeek’s most popular annual features. The world’s largest manufacturing companies are ranked by revenue. Also identified are the top manufacturing countries in the world, as well as a ranking of the biggest companies by country. The entire list resides on the IndustryWeek website, and is one of the most accessed areas of the site.

Best Places for Manufacturing
October

This IndustryWeek guide to strategic site selection offers an in-depth look at the decisions manufacturers need to make when considering new locations for their facilities.  This feature will profile the cities, states and regions of the United States that are the most “manufacturing-friendly.”  This guide takes into consideration such key factors as taxes, regulatory environment, best trained workforce, accessibility to major highways and ports, and best overall industry climate.

IW's Manufacturing Hall of Fame
December

Executive leadership can mean a world of difference to the success -- or failure -- of a company.  In this special feature, IW spotlights a select group of manufacturing leaders who have contributed significantly to their company’s success as well as advanced the cause of the manufacturing industry itself.  In this celebration of outstanding achievement, IW will honor those individuals who demonstrate extraordinary leadership in the pursuit of manufacturing excellence.