15 Industry Examples

The industry is an economic activity that transforms raw Materials in consumer products. To do this, it uses energy, human resources and specific machinery. To obtain all this, the capital investment and the presence of a market that allows the consumption of manufactured products. For example: steel, metallurgy, aeronautics.

The industry belongs to “Secondary sector” of the economy, which differs from the primary sector, which takes raw materials from natural resources (agriculture, livestock, fishing, mining, etc.) and the tertiary sector that offers services. However, the three sectors are closely related. Currently, some economic activities that belong to the third sector are also considered industries.

Industrial society

In the 18th century England developed the "Industrial Revolution", a series of changes in production that gradually turned a large part of the world's countries into industrial societies. Industrial society is characterized by urban development: a concentration of the

population in cities. They are both production centers (factories are located in or around them) and consumption centers.

Besides of city ​​development and the appearance of factories, in industrial societies we find an organization and division of labor that allows increasing production, the use of machines and different types of technology to replace or complement manual labor and the formation of a social sector that did not exist in societies prior to the Industrial Revolution: wage earners.

Industry Classification

Depending on their position in the production system, industries can be basic, equipment or consumer.

Furthermore, industries can be distinguished between heavy and light, depending on the weight of the raw materials they use. These two classifications intersect with each other. The heavy industries are usually base and team, while the light industry (also called transformation) is usually consumer.

Industry examples

1. Iron and steel industry
2. Metallurgy
3. Cement
4. Chemistry
5. Petrochemistry
6. Automotive
7. Shipping company
8. Railways
9. Armament
10. Textiles
11. Paper
12. Aeronautics
13. Mining
14. Food
15. Textile