The advanced manufacturing sector is defined by a set of high-tech industries that focus on the design, manufacturing, and assembly of the chemicals, electronic, and mechanical parts, machinery, and products that provide the basis of modern telecommunications, transportation, health care, and energy supply. The sector includes the highly-diverse industries of chemical manufacturing and oil-based energy supply; machinery and metal product manufacturing; computer, electronics, and electronic equipment and components manufacturing; composites manufacturing, transportation equipment manufacturing; and medical supplies and devices manufacturing. While these industries diverge in the products they create, they are defined by the design, manufacturing, and assembly process as well as a common set of workforce requirements, including a dependence on technically trained workers with computer-aided and highly-technical manufacturing and machinery operation skills.

Advanced manufacturing companies can further be defined by their productivity factors, continued reliance on technical upgrades, a commitment to research and development to refine their products, as well as the highly-specialized production lines that are required to knit these firms and their suppliers together in global webs. Because of the specialization within the industry, a complementary industrial focus in logistics and distribution often accompanies advanced manufacturing firms, ensuring that high-quality, competitive-cost parts are sourced from around the world and delivered just in time for final assembly.