Advanced manufacturing is ramping up across the United States. The surge in 2022 and 2023 was driven by federal incentives including the and the , while recent global trade uncertainty driven by the introduction of tariffs continue to fuel the acceleration of onshoring. Companies are increasing investments to expand domestic capacity, modernize supply chains and strengthen long-term resilience. For many, onshoring is no longer a future strategy. It is an immediate business imperative.
But speed and scale introduce new risk. These investments often involve multi-billion-dollar programs with multiple facilities delivered concurrently across expansive campuses, where infrastructure, utilities and production spaces must come online in a precise sequence. Delays in power upgrades, long-lead equipment procurement, permitting approvals or utility plant commissioning can stall downstream installation and push back operational startup dates tied directly to revenue and incentive commitments. Labor shortages, supply chain volatility and coordination across designers, equipment vendors and local authorities further compound the challenge. In this environment, success depends not just on funding or design excellence, but on selecting a contractor capable of managing procurement strategy, infrastructure readiness, stakeholder coordination and phased turnover with precision, consistency and urgency.
Key Trends Driving U.S. Onshoring
According to , more than 500 post-IRA onshoring advanced manufacturing projects have been announced across industries such as automotive, life sciences, semiconductors and energy. Major pharmaceutical manufacturers such as , , and are investing heavily in domestic production, while automakers, including and clean-energy firms like , are following suit.
Manufacturing-related demand is projected to reach , underscoring the scale and durability of this shift. Several forces are driving this acceleration:
Tariff and Trade Uncertainty
Rising costs, supply chain concerns and tariff uncertainty are prompting manufacturers to move operations to the U.S., with exemptions for pharmaceutical plant construction further boosting onshoring in that sector.
Growing Industries
While the automotive industry has led manufacturing, growth in energy, AI, and aerospace and defense is now boosting demand and prompting manufacturers to move operations to the U.S
Infrastructure Investment and Public Incentives
The IRA, and CHIPS and Science Act fueled manufacturing investment, raising construction spending from just over $6M in July 2020 to over $18M in July 2025, per the US Census Bureau.
A New Era of Manufacturing Construction
The current onshoring surge is being — including semiconductors and AI hardware, battery and EV production, clean energy, aerospace and defense, life sciences and advanced materials — each bringing specialized facility requirements and aggressive timelines that compete for labor, land and infrastructure.
Unlike traditional industrial development, these projects are defined by infrastructure intensity and operational precision. Semiconductor facilities require high-capacity power, ultra-controlled clean environments and precision process integration. Battery and EV manufacturers are delivering multi-building campuses at scale with complex supply-chain coordination. Aerospace and defense programs introduce security requirements and layered stakeholder oversight. Life sciences facilities demand large clear heights, significant process utilities and compliance-driven turnover. These facilities rely on high-purity piping systems, specialized ventilation, vibration controls and tightly regulated environmental tolerances, all of which must align with equipment vendor specifications well before installation begins.
While these sectors differ in output, they share common realities: long-lead procurement, specialized labor needs, utility-driven schedules and complex commissioning requirements. In many campus programs, central utility plants and process infrastructure must be fully operational before production buildings can be validated, making early infrastructure sequencing a critical path driver.
In this environment, speed-to-market is no longer simply a competitive advantage, but is a financial risk-management strategy. Incentives and funding are often tied to job creation milestones and operational readiness, placing additional pressure on delivery schedules. Yet many manufacturers are building amid grid constraints, limited site availability and skilled labor shortages, where infrastructure upgrades can extend timelines and introduce significant risk. With billions of dollars at stake, even minor schedule disruptions can delay production launch and create cascading impacts across supply chains and revenue forecasts.
Meeting speed-to-market demands requires more than fast-track scheduling. It requires disciplined planning that aligns design development, procurement strategy, infrastructure readiness and construction sequencing with equipment delivery and commissioning milestones. Many manufacturers are not planning a single facility, but a repeatable expansion model across multiple sites and phases, requiring consistent execution outcomes at scale.
Supporting the Next Generation of Manufacturing Growth
As advanced manufacturing investment accelerates across the U.S., project success increasingly depends on more than what is being built — it depends on how it is delivered. Speed-to-market expectations, utility constraints, long-lead equipment procurement and commissioning requirements have made delivery strategy a defining factor in whether a facility can achieve operational readiness on schedule.
Manufacturers pursuing complex, multi-phase programs must evaluate delivery methods that support early planning, real-time coordination and predictable execution. Approaches such as design-build, Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) and collaborative contracting models can provide the structure needed to integrate design, procurement and construction sequencing early, while reducing schedule risk and improving transparency across stakeholders.
Îçҹ̽»¨Íø has extensive experience delivering mission-critical and advanced manufacturing programs that require disciplined preconstruction planning, complex infrastructure coordination and phased turnover execution. Whether supporting fast-track delivery through early contractor involvement or coordinating multiple trade partners across large-scale campuses, our teams help manufacturers align construction strategy with operational goals.
In the next part of this series, we will explore how manufacturers can select the right delivery method to support speed, predictability and long-term program success and why that decision is often the most important step in turning an ambitious schedule into an achievable outcome.