As this blog reported earlier in the week, President Barack Obama visited Indiana on Friday for Manufacturing Day along with Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker. During their visit to Millennium Steel in Princeton, President Obama announced a $200 million nationwide manufacturing initiative to fund the creation of an Integrated Photonics Manufacturing Institute, the next step in the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation. The Department of Commerce will also publish a resource to help manufacturers locate in the country without outsourcing.

"When our manufacturing base is strong, our entire economy is strong," said the President during his Manufacturing Day proclamation. "Today, we continue our work to bolster the industry at the heart of our nation. With grit and resolve, we can create new jobs and widen the circle of opportunity for more Americans."

Also on Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released the latest national employment numbers, with America's jobless rate falling below 6 percent for the first time in six years. September was the 55th consecutive month of job creation, an unprecedented streak, and the unemployment rate has fallen by 1.3 percent over the last year. In the manufacturing sector, 700,000 jobs have been added since 2010.

The White House published a series of charts showing more encouraging signs for the United States' manufacturers: the sector generates $2.1 trillion, more than all but eight nations worldwide, and manufacturing supports one out of every seven private sector workers. The U.S. has also recently retaken the lead for global inbound investment, ahead of China.

Indiana's manufacturers have many software resources available from local companies to aid in the smooth running of their operations. Manufacturing ERP software comes with features to plan and track every step of the production process, from inventory to distribution.