Basic industry extracts raw materials, processes raw materials and natural resources, and creates products that are utilized further by other industries.
According to the reports of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the jobs provided by basic industries are 22,262,90. Is basic industries a good career path?
It has been gathered that basic industries provide numerous job opportunities to the masses of the world, if you are unable to read and write, still you can work within the basic industries field and can enjoy job security.
The article is about the career paths and how many jobs basic industries provide. The study is also extended to the basic industries job, their requirements, and the salary.
Table of Contents
- What is Basic Industry?
- Basic Vs. Non-Basic Industries
- Why these are Important?
- Their Roles In the Global Economy
- Basic Industry Examples
- Companies in Basic Industries
- How to Succeed in the Basic Industries
- Best Paying Jobs In Basic Industries
- Pros and Cons of Basic Industries
- Adverse Effects On Environment
- Conclusion
- Frequently Asked Questions
What is Basic Industry?
A basic industry is a kind of industry that extracts raw materials, processes natural resources, and creates products that are utilized further by other industries.
Basic industries add too much to the global economy in one or another. Jobs in this industry are produced by manufacturing, forestry, mining, construction industry, hunting, fishing, and countless others.
These are also considered as the hub of production-oriented business. These industries do not provide their products directly to the consumers, rather they give them to manufacturers for further processing.
Basic Vs. Non-Basic Industries
Basic industries are the kinds of industries that extract raw materials, process natural resources, and create products that are utilized further by other industries.
Conversely, non basic industries work on the products of basic industries and sell them to the consumers directly.
The basic industry generates money beyond the community and serves the whole global economy while that of non-basic is only limited to the community. Examples of the non-basic industries are small firms, service companies, diners, convenience stores, etc.
Why these are Important?
Basic industries supply raw materials and other products for the industries, without these industries, other major industries would be unable to provide anything for the community and global economy.
They provide numerous career opportunities to the masses of the world, if you are unable to read and write, still you can work within the basic industries and enjoy job security.
Their Roles In the Global Economy
The first prominent role of the basic industries is producing raw materials, products, and other things for other industries. Without basic industries, you cannot imagine other non basic industries.
Another role is serving the masses of the globe with jobs and career opportunities. Basic industries like agriculture, mining, petroleum, etc. earn the foreign exchange and contribute in the betterment of lives.
Basic Industry Examples
The examples with details of basic industries are the following;
Agriculture Industry
The agricultural industry produces crops, food for living organisms, and fiber that they need for their lives. Agricultural industries serve the basic needs of living organisms.
Agri industries are vital for a state’s economy and the global economy is nothing without agriculture industries. United States gets more than $1 trillion in GDP because of agriculture.
Top Universities for Agricultural Sciences
The top universities in the US serving the field of agricultural sciences include but not limited to Cornell University, University of California, Davis, University of Florida, Harvard University university.
Likewise, University of Illinois, Michigan State University, West Lafayette Campus, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Iowa State University, and University of Massachusetts Amherst are also significant names.
Production of the Industry
The products produced by agricultural and food scientists in the industries are; food crops (wheat, rice, maize, soya beans, hay, etc.), dairy products (milk, yogurt, cheese, etc.), agricultural products (chicken, cattle, hogs, etc.) fish farming and countless more.
Oil and Gas Industry
The roads are busy due to this industry, and the aircraft are flying high with the mercy of this industry, from cooking food to steam engine gas, every corner of the globe is dependent on this basic industry.
Oil and gas are the primary fuel sources and are crucial for the global economy. These primary industries serve the oil and gas exploration, production, transportation, processing, refining and marketing.
Related Study: Is Oil And Gas Production A Good Career Path
Universities for Chemical Engineering
The Top Universities for Chemical Engineering in the United States are; Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, University of Delaware, and University of California, Berkeley.
In the expansion; Stanford University, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, California Institute of Technology, University of Texas, Austin, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are also big names.
Products of the Industry
The products produced by the oil and gas industry include; asphalt, petrol, diesel, fuel oil for heating, lubricants, gasoline engines, propane, and natural gas.
Mining Industry
The mining industry is the major type of basic industry, mining safety engineers work with the extraction workers for minerals extraction from the underground, mountains, sea, and other areas.
The mining industry is the main source of income and renewable energy for many countries in Africa, South Asia, and other countries.
Top Universities for Geo Sciences
The top universities in the United States include the University of California, Los Angeles, California Institute of Technology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Columbia University, and University of Maryland.
Likewise, College Park, University of Washington, Seattle, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Harvard University, University of California, and Irvine, Princeton University are running a good department.
Mining Industries Production
The mining industries are involved in producing two types of materials; metallic and non-metallic mining. The former includes; lead, silver, copper, gold, lead, etc. while the latter includes; clay, marble, Esmeralda, Granite, sapphire, etc.
Paper and Pulp Industry
The pulp and paper manufacturing industry serves the globe with the production of materials like papers that are used for books, notebooks, official files, and other paperwork.
Like the textile industry, this industry offers numerous job openings for the production and manufacturing processes of paper and selling to other industries for further work.
Materials Produced
The materials produced by the paper and pulp industry are paper for notebooks, books, official files, papers for catalogs, shiny papers, and many other types of paper for other purposes.
It also serves the world with paper and tissue-based packaging.
Steel Industry
The steel industry is responsible for the extraction of iron, recycling the scrap metal into steel, processing it to make steel, and also for the production of steel items.
This industry plays a key role in a country’s economy and provides jobs for millions of people.
production of the Industry
Examples of the products produced by these industries are; girders, iron, steel pipes, steel tubes, beams, railway tracks for trains, steel for vehicles, and countless more.
Chemical Industry
The chemical industry is a world of industries in itself and produces chemical products that are used by other industries like the manufacturing industry, agriculture, construction, etc.
There are primary sectors of the chemical industry that are responsible for the production of numerous materials. What are the subsectors of the chemical industry?
Petrochemical Industry
This industry contributes to the globe with the production of chemicals that are derived from petroleum and natural gas. The chemical products produced by this industry are then used by other various industries.
Inorganic Chemical Industry
other sectors of the chemical industry are inorganic industry that produces inorganic chemicals like salts, acids, bases, sulfur, phosphorus, nitrogen, etc.
These chemicals are then utilized by other industries agriculture, construction projects, the manufacturing sector, etc.
Organic Chemical Industry
The organic chemical industry is famous for producing alcohol, ketones, and aldehydes, and then is provided to the consumers like food, agriculture, beverage, etc.
They are also serving pharmaceutical companies for producing medicines, drugs, etc. They also produce materials like carbohydrates, fats, nucleic acids, proteins, etc.
Pharmaceutical industry
The pharmaceutical industry produces medicines, drugs, vaccines, and other wide range of products for the health care departments of the world. These products are then purchased by the users for the cure of diseases.
Companies in Basic Industries
The companies that are involved in the production of items and raise the GDP of a country in the shape of basic industries are the following;
PPG Industries
The PPG industries have been employing 50,000 total employees, out of them 21,300 are working in North America. Its main headquarters is located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
These industries manufacture coatings, paints, optical products, and also materials for other industries.
Ecolab
Ecolab is a significant company in basic industries, operating from its main headquarters in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
These downstream companies are now across the whole globe in more than 170 countries, producing food production, hotels, restaurants, paper mills, hospitals, power generation, plant manufacturing, and numerous other businesses.
BHP Group Limited
BHP Group Limited is a group of companies providing jobs to almost 35,000, operating from the main headquarters in Melbourne, Victoria, and Australia.
These companies involve hands on work like metals production, mining, and Petroleum Company.
Cargill
Cargill, founded in 1865 in Minnetonka, Minnesota, is an American food company with its main headquarters in Wayzata, MN.
It has provided jobs to more than 166,000 employees and has been providing food ingredients and refrigerated food items. Cargill now earns in billions of dollars, it has generated $114.695 billion of revenue in 2018.
Dupont
Dupont is also an American company, its full name is Dupont de Nemours, was founded in 2017 and started serving biotechnology and chemical manufacturing.
Its headquarters are in Wilmington, DE. Dupont has been serving 34,000 employees with jobs. It has ranked 35 out of 500 corporations in the United States in 2019.
How to Succeed in the Basic Industries
Basic industries are good paths for rewarding careers, career advancement, and technological advancements but another question that arises in normal minds is what are the ways to succeed in basic industries.
There are some ways of success in the basic industries.
Good Aptitude
The competition has always been growing in these industries and participating in the race is only possible due to good aptitude.
Once you step into the job market, you will have to be cautious of learning the skills, diversifying your assets of learning, and proactive approaches to the changes.
Adaptability
The next demand of basic industries for success in the career is adaptability. This is a good career path but if there are any uncertain circumstances you will have to be adaptable.
You should always update your skills and certifications to survive any economic downturns.
Teamwork
Teamwork is vital for not only basic industries but for all career paths. You have to develop team working skills, to learn and teach within the environment.
Basic industries have huge tasks that cannot be done individually, so you have to collaborate with your teammates.
Productivity
Productivity is what differentiates you from other employees. To be productive you have to; manage your time well, bring creativity and criticality to your thinking, and to learn multitask in the manufacturing environment.
Skills
If you have skills, you are the best among qualified workers for the basic industries. Every company will welcome you with respect and decent pay.
Scientists need critical and analytical skills while other skilled workers need communication skills, technical skills, and other essential skills.
There are numerous high paying career paths in basic industries like petroleum engineering, drilling engineering, horticulturists, metallurgists, agriculture chemists, mining and geological engineering, geology, electrical engineering, etc.
Petroleum Engineer
Petroleum engineering is a well-paying job in the basic industries, often paying a $137,330 annual package. The responsibilities of these engineers are extracting, producing, and transporting oil and gas from offshore and onshore drilling.
Horticulturist
Another basic career in the basic industries is that of horticulture with $40,000 annual package. They work in the fields for the growing, caring, and cultivating of plants and trees and the necessary environment for them.
Their work may also extend to greenhouses, gardens, nurseries, and forests as well.
Drilling Engineer
Drilling engineering is also a burning field in the modern and technological world. The drilling engineers work within the petrochemical companies and operate oil drilling. They often get more or less than $1100,0000 annual wage.
Agriculture Chemist
Agriculture is a wide field and as discussed earlier in the article the agriculture field is related to the care for the crops and serving the economy of a country.
The emerging field in agriculture is that of agriculture chemists with an $80,680 annual package.
Metallurgists work for the production of metal components, their responsibilities may range from making tiny components to huge engineering components.
The industries with their productivity and creativity invite well-educated and skilled graduates to contribute to the community.
Mining and Geological Engineering
The natural resources need to be dug out of the mines and processed further for consumers.
These mining and geological engineers get a $93,800 annual wage and work hard to uncover and extract underground minerals like rocks, coal mines, etc.
Geologists
Geology has been growing and always in demand, geologists earn well, they get $93,580 annual pay. They work on the fossils and uncover the history of the fossil records.
Their responsibilities may include research, teaching, fieldwork, and plenty more.
Pros and Cons of Basic Industries
The benefits and disadvantages of working in the basic industries are;
Pros
There is job stability, low barrier to entry, opportunities for economic growth, on the job training opportunities, handsome packages, work life balance, skills diversity, and countless more.
Cons
You must think about the cons of working in the basic industries. The cons include labor-intensive jobs, physical aspects, possible hazardous working conditions, dangerous jobs, workforce based on the economy, etc.
Adverse Effects On Environment
The adverse effects of the basic industries on our environments are; water pollution and waterborne diseases, air pollution and airborne diseases, and soil pollution and its effects on crops and yield production.
The most hazardous ones are climate change and global warming, which need to be addressed with environmental awareness.
Conclusion
Basic industry extracts raw materials, processes natural resources, and creates products that are utilized further by other industries. Is basic industries a good career path?
Basic industries offer; job stability, low barriers to entry, opportunities for career growth, training opportunities, handsome packages, skills diversity, and countless more but there are some effects of these industries on our environment as well.
There are also some disadvantages; labor-intensive jobs, possible hazardous working conditions, workforce based on the economy, etc. These industries also have adverse effects on the environment that cause serious health issues.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are basic industries important?
They provide raw materials and other products for the industries, without these industries other industries would be unable to provide anything for the community and global economy.
What are basic industries?
Basic industries extract raw materials, process natural resources, and create products that are utilized further by other industries. Examples of these industries are small firms, service companies, diners, convenience, etc.
Is the IT industry a good career path?
Yes, IT is a phenomenal career path with millions of dollars in annual packages. IT engineers earn well through their contribution to the informational and technological world.
What is the difference between a basic industry and non-basic industry?
Basic industries extract raw materials, process natural resources, and create products for other industries. Non basic industries work on the products of basic industries and sell them to the consumers directly.
