Analysis
NAICS 334111 is the 2022 national industry for electronic computer manufacturing, part of 33411 (Computer and Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing). Census lists 14 example activities under it in the official index.
Between 2018 and 2023 the number of establishments fell 32% and employment fell 17%. The 2018 count used NAICS 2017, so part of a large move can come from codes being redefined rather than from businesses opening or closing.
County Business Patterns counts 212 US establishments in this code in 2023, employing 13,144 people at an average annual payroll of $137,921 per employee (95th percentile of national industries). 45% of the establishments have fewer than five employees, which is close to the national mix.
Its index entries, the activities Census uses to assign businesses to this code, include analog computers manufacturing, computer servers manufacturing, computers manufacturing and digital computers manufacturing, among 14 in all.
Its goods appear in 5 statistical lines of the US tariff schedule, mostly under headings 8471 (automatic data processing machines and units thereof…). That link is how import data is matched to domestic producers, for example in trade-remedy cases.
Census lists 4 related activities that belong elsewhere, most often in 334210, 334610, 33441 and 449210. Businesses that do several things are classified by their primary activity, the one that generates the most value, so check those boundaries before settling on this code.
Official definition
This U.S. industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing and/or assembling electronic computers, such as mainframes, personal computers, workstations, laptops, and computer servers. Computers can be analog, digital, or hybrid. Digital computers, the most common type, are devices that do all of the following: (1) store the processing program or programs and the data immediately necessary for the execution of the program; (2) can be freely programmed in accordance with the requirements of the user; (3) perform arithmetical computations specified by the user; and (4) execute, without human intervention, a processing program that requires the computer to modify its execution by logical decision during the processing run. Analog computers are capable of simulating mathematical models and contain at least analog, control, and programming elements. The manufacture of computers includes the assembly or integration of processors, coprocessors, memory, storage, and input/output devices into a user-programmable final product.
Source: US Census Bureau, NAICS 2022 Manual.
Not this code if…
| The business mainly does | Use instead |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing digital telecommunications switches, and local area network and wide area network communication equipment, such as bridges, routers, and gateways | 334210 Telephone Apparatus Manufacturing |
| Manufacturing blank magnetic and optical recording media | 334610 Manufacturing and Reproducing Magnetic and Optical Media |
| Manufacturing internal, loaded, printed circuit board devices, such as sound, video, controller, and network interface cards; internal and external computer modems; and semiconductor storage devices, such as memory chips | 33441 Semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing |
| Retailing computers with on-site assembly | 449210 Electronics and Appliance Retailers |
Index entries (14)
- Analog computers manufacturing
- Computer servers manufacturing
- Computers manufacturing
- Digital computers manufacturing
- Hybrid computers manufacturing
- Laptop computers manufacturing
- Mainframe computers manufacturing
- Microcomputers manufacturing
- Minicomputers manufacturing
- Notebook computers manufacturing
- Personal computers manufacturing
- Portable computers manufacturing
- Tablet computers manufacturing
- Workstations, computer, manufacturing