Manufacturing in Mexicali is expanding
In total, Baja California has 931 maquiladora facilities installed. This industrial base has positioned the state as a leader in manufacturing, maquila, and export services. IMMEX’s production plant in the entity represents 18% at the national level, according to information from the Secretariat of Sustainable Economy and Tourism (SEST). Many of the companies in production in the entity are doing their manufacturing in Mexicali.
Mexicali ranks as one of the leading cities in the maquiladora industry in Mexico. A total of 124 companies affiliated with the National Manufacturing and Export Industry Association (Index) make up one of the most substantial pistons in Baja California’s economic engine. Manufacturing in Mexicali has generated a total of approximately 70,000 jobs.
Victor Hugo Delgado Sánchez, president of Index Mexicali, has detailed that most of the companies that have located operations there are from the United States. In addition to this, there is also significant investment in the area with its origins in Europe and Asia.
Primary industries manufacturing in Mexicali
Baja California’s capital city stands out in the medical, automotive, telecommunications, metalworking, electronics, and, above all, the aerospace sectors. Along with other notable Mexican cities that include Querétaro. In recent years, Mexicali has positioned itself as one of the top ten global rankings of FDI Intelligence of Future Aerospace Cities prepared by the Financial Times.
Currently, Mexicali houses an inventory of aerospace companies that are the source of approximately 16,000 jobs. As manufacturing in Mexicali expands, this number is expected to rise.
The United States remains the most significant investor in Mexicali’s industrial sector; however, Canada, France, and Germany have focused their attention on this growing city to expand aerospace investments. Companies such as Collins Aerospace, Gulfstream Aerospace, GKN Aerospace, Chromalloy, among others, stand out as leading manufacturers in the city.
Another leading sector that makes up a considerable portion of manufacturing in Mexicali is the electronics industry. Companies from Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan have opted to invest in the city by bringing their know-how and state-of-the-art equipment. Skyworks, Technicolor, Valutech, LG, and Mitsubishi have discovered an ability to increase the value of their operations in the capital of Baja California.
With a well-trained workforce, the metalworking industry has consolidated its manufacturing in Mexicali, as well. Companies such as Accuride, Black & Decker, and Rheem stand out in this sector.
With 15 companies in the medical device manufacturing industry, Mexicali participates in the Baja California medical cluster in Latin America. The city and the state combine to make up the second-largest medical device manufacturing sector in Latin America. With a workforce of more than 6,000 engineers, technicians, as well as other skilled and unskilled positions, manufacturing, assembly, and packaging operations are carried out in Mexicali production plants. Vyaire, Intuitive Surgical, Breg, and Masimo are part of the city’s medical industry’s employment-generating companies.
Index President Mexicali has stated that geographically the Baja California state capital is situated in a prime location in that it adjoins the neighboring US state of California. This favorable position gives products manufactured in Mexico easy access to lucrative cross-border markets. Additionally, the city’s proximity to Pacific ports is attractive to investment capital from Asian countries.
The USMCA is opening up more opportunities for manufacturing in Mexicali
With the July 1, 2020 implementation of the new free trade treaty between the United States, Mexico, and Canada (USMCA), prospects for the growth of the city of Mexicali’s economy are favorable for the medium and the long term. This prognostication is according to the opinion president of Index Mexicali.
With the integration that we are experiencing within the different regional and global markets, other countries can invest in Mexico to be able to participate in the North American free-trade market,” said Victor Hugo Delgado Sánchez.
