Manufacturing provided the historic supports to Cleveland's economy. But heavy industry in the city was hard hit in the later part of the 20th century, with aging plants unable to compete with cheaper goods from overseas. Manufacturing employment declined by about one-third from the 1970s; today it accounts for only about one-fifth of the labor force. Nevertheless, manufacturing remains important and will likely stay a central part of the economy because the city is within a short transportation distance of many of the country's people. Since the 1970s the economy has also diversified, adding business services, high technology, and tourism to its traditional base. This helps the city weather downturns in any one industry.
Cleveland is the home of many large manufacturers—among them are B.P. America (petroleum products), TRW (transportation components), the Eaton Corporation (vehicle power train components, electrical equipment, and controls), LTV Corporation (steel products), Sherwin Williams (paints and varnishes), Parker Hannifen (motion control components), Rockwell International (electronics), Figgie International (fire protection and construction equipment), and American Greetings Company (greeting cards). Hundreds of smaller manufacturing plants, led by the makers of machinery and machine tools, transportation equipment, electrical equipment, fabricated metal products, and plastics and polymers, are located throughout the Cleveland metropolitan area. Research and development in Cleveland includes biomedical engineering drawing on university and hospital research programs, and polymer research based on years of experience in plastics and rubber manufacture. The Lewis Research Center of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is situated near Cleveland's airport.
