Industry

Industry refers to economic activities connected with the conversion of resources into useful goods. The term generally applies to activities that use mechanical appliances and technical skills — producing or processing goods, and also breeding and raising animals. "Industry" is also used to mean a group of firms producing similar or related goods (for example, the cotton textile industry covers all units making textile goods from cotton; the electronic industry covers all firms making electronic goods). In common speech, some services such as banking and insurance are also called industries (the banking industry, the insurance industry).

Industries are divided into three broad categories — primary, secondary and tertiary.

Primary industries — concerned with the extraction and production of natural resources and the reproduction and development of living organisms and plants. They are of two kinds:

• Extractive industries — extract or draw products from natural sources. They supply basic raw materials, mostly products of the geographical or natural environment, which manufacturing industries then transform into other useful goods. Examples: farming, mining, lumbering, hunting and fishing.
• Genetic industries — engaged in breeding plants and animals for further reproduction. Examples: seeds and nursery companies, cattle breeding farms, poultry farms and fish hatcheries.

Secondary industries — use materials that have already been extracted by primary industries and process them into goods for final consumption or for further processing. For example, mining iron ore is a primary industry, but manufacturing steel from raw iron is a secondary industry. They are of two kinds:

• Manufacturing industries — produce goods by processing raw materials, thereby creating form utility. Based on their method of operation they are of four types:
  • Analytical — analyses and separates different elements from the same material (e.g., an oil refinery).
  • Synthetical — combines various ingredients into a new product (e.g., cement).
  • Processing — passes materials through successive stages to make a finished product (e.g., sugar, paper).
  • Assembling — assembles different component parts into a new product (e.g., television, car, computer). …