Factory work is big here in the Hoosier State, where manufacturing coordinates with our ports, rails, and roadways to provide all sorts of products for global marketplaces. According to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC), in part due to being first in pass-through highways and first in rail tons of primary metals, Indiana has the “highest concentration of manufacturing jobs in the nation,” with “25% of Indiana’s economic output is based in manufacturing.”
Industry Select (IS) confirms that Indiana is a “major state for manufacturing,” especially in the pharmaceutical, automotive, and steel industries. This year, according to IS, there are over 7700 manufacturers operating in Indiana, employing 581,280 workers:
- Indianapolis (10th in the US) employs 63,216 workers, followed by Elkhart (31,816); Fort Wayne (25,573); Lafayette (17,947); and Columbus (17,041).
- Marion County has the most industrial jobs in the state (80,179), following by Elkhart (67,516); Allen (32,546); Lake (30,241); and St. Joseph’s (21,691).
Read, “Top 10 Manufacturing Companies in Indiana,” published by Industry Select on May 16, 2025.
Indiana Factories: Major Manufacturing Employers for Hoosiers
Industry Select also provides the following list of the top manufacturing companies in the State of Indiana:
- Eli Lilly & Co. (pharmaceuticals)
- Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Indiana, Inc. (motor vehicles)
- Lippert Components, Inc. (transportation equipment)
- Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc. (motor vehicles)
- Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc. (medical equipment)
- Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Div. (military equipment)
- General Motors, Fort Wayne Assembly (motor vehicles)
- Rolls-Royce Corp. (engines and propulsion systems)
- Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc. (steel)
- United States Steel Corp., Gary Works. (steel).
Most Hoosiers either work at one of these factories, or another Indiana manufacturing site, or know someone who does. Factory work is a longstanding tradition in our part of the country, from historical steelmaking to car makers who have made their home in Indiana for over a century.
A tremendous number of Indiana families depend upon these manufacturing facilities for jobs, where workers earn a living doing all kinds of tasks in very dangerous environments. Manufacturing is recognized as one of the most dangerous worksites with high risks of bodily harm that can cause permanent injuries or death from a work accident.
Read: What Is The Most Dangerous Job in Indiana and Illinois?
Common Work Accidents in Indiana Factories: Manufacturing Work is Dangerous
The manufacturing industry in Indiana is complicated, and not every factory poses the same risks to its workers. While there is a common denomination of danger for all our factory workers, the likelihood of being hurt in a work accident is very different, depending upon the specific job site.
There will be different hazards for someone working in the manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, for instance, that those faced by steelworkers in a Gary steel mill. Add to this variety of worksites, the variation in tasks required in the various facilities: welding comes with different dangers than operating a forklift or handling hazardous chemicals.
Nevertheless, for safety agencies, government regulators, and advocates for worker victims and their loved ones, it is known that no matter the specific job or the type of manufacturing process, some common work accidents are known to happen in a factory.
Regardless of the massive number of safety regulations and industrial standards, all Indiana factory workers may face severe harm in incidents involving:
- collisions involving work vehicles
- collisions involving industrial trucks
- contact with heavy machinery
- contact with heavy equipment
- contact with power tools
- exposure to harmful substances
- exposure to toxins in the work environment
- falls (slips, trips) at the floor level
- falls (slips, trips) from a height.
Bodily injuries suffered by an Indiana factory worker often involve catastrophic and life-altering harm or fatal injuries that include things like:
- Amputation or traumatic amputation (loss of limb)
- Blunt force trauma
- Disfigurement and scarring from burns
- Loss of use of body part due to burns
- Internal organ damage (like kidney function or lung capacity)
- Nervous system injuries
- Paralysis (full or partial)
- Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBIs)
- Spinal Cord injuries.
Of course, someone working at the Eli Lilly factory where pharmaceuticals are being manufactured is more likely to suffer organ damage or death from exposure to a toxic industrial chemical than from falling from a crane or scaffold, where fatal blunt force trauma may come to a factory worker for Cleveland-Cliffs or U.S. Steel.
The concerns for Indiana factory worker risks of injury are not exaggerated. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that there has been a significant rise in factory worker deaths (13 fatalities in 2022 compared to 21 deaths in 2023).
For more, read:
- Amputation Injuries from On-the-Job Work Accidents in Indiana or Illinois;
- Amputations in Factory Work: Severe or Deadly Manufacturing Accidents;
- Blunt Trauma Injuries in Industrial Work Accidents;
- Head Injury in an Accident: Varied Causes of Permanent Brain Injuries;
- Spinal Cord Injuries: Tragic Result of Serious Accidents; and
- Chemical Accidents: Burns, Inhalation, or Neurological Work Injuries on the Job in Indiana or Illinois.
Justice For Indiana Factory Workers Hurt on the Job at Manufacturing Worksites
The manufacturing industry is a very important part of Indiana’s economy, with a well-respected reputation for providing all sorts of goods and products for both end-use as well as other manufacturing needs. Twenty percent (20%) of Indiana factory workers are involved in advanced manufacturing, according to the IEDC.
However, the danger of being severely hurt or killed while on the job remains unacceptably high for Indiana factory workers. For those Hoosiers and their loved ones, it is important to know they are owed stringent duties of safety and care not only from the employer that signs their paycheck, but from other companies and individuals whose failure to meet their legal safety duties can cause an almost instantaneous tragedy.
For more, read: Premises Liability and Workplace Accidents: Third Party Injury Claims; 7 Different Parties Who Can Be Liable for Indiana Steel Worker Injury; and Manufacturing Work in Indiana and Illinois: Can Workers Force Manufacturers to Make Job Sites Safer?
Indiana offers a longstanding workers’ compensation system to help factory workers hurt on the job. These injured workers may also discover civil claims for personal injury damages with the help of legal advocates and accident reconstruction experts with specific knowledge of their industry and its risks.
Investigation into the factory worker’s accident may find that things like failures in repair of a machine, lax workplace housekeeping, or failures to warn of chemical risks, form the basis of a legal claim. Damages may be awarded that include past, present, and future medical expenses; psychological help; rehabilitation therapies; pain and suffering; lost wages; lost future earning capacity; and more.
Also read:
- The Two Main Differences Between Workers Compensation and Personal Injury Claims for Accident Victims in Indiana and Illinois
- Workers’ Compensation and Third-Party Claims for On-the-Job Accidents
- 10 Types of Injury Damages That May Be Awarded to Accident Victims
- 10 Types of Workers Compensation Benefits After a Work Accident in Illinois or Indiana.
Hoosiers who have been hurt in an Indiana factory accident, or their loved ones, have a right to know about all the possible civil claims they may have for harm they have suffered, which can be pursued independently of Indiana workers’ compensation benefits. Factory work in Indiana is dangerous. Please be careful out there!
