Industry

A collection of firms producing similar products or services (e.g., Telecommunications Equipment Manufacturing, Steel Manufacturing).

Terminology

Term	Definition
Light Industry	Manufacturing activities focused on consumer goods; typically labor-intensive, less capital-intensive, lower pollution, smaller facilities, and lower energy requirements compared to heavy industry.
Heavy Industry	Manufacturing activities involving large-scale capital equipment, high energy consumption, heavy machinery, and production of industrial inputs such as steel, chemicals, machinery, and large transport equipment. Often associated with higher environmental impact.
Primary Industry	Economic activities that extract or harvest natural resources (e.g., mining, agriculture, forestry, fishing). It is the first stage of the value chain.
Secondary Industry	Industries that process raw materials into intermediate or final goods through manufacturing, construction, or industrial processing.
Tertiary Industry	Service-based activities that provide intangible value, including retail, finance, health care, logistics, and professional services.
Manufacturing	The industrial process of transforming raw or intermediate materials into finished or semi-finished goods using labor, machinery, tools, and processing technologies.
Service	Economic activities that deliver intangible outputs—expertise, labor, experience, or solutions—rather than physical goods.
Low-Altitude Economy	An emerging concept referring to economic activities that occur in low-altitude airspace (typically below 1,000 meters), such as drone logistics, aerial urban mobility, low-altitude tourism, inspection services, and related infrastructure and services.
Energy Industry	The sector involved in the production, transformation, distribution, and sale of energy resources (e.g., oil, gas, renewables, electricity) and related infrastructure and services.

Taxonomy

Level	Name	Description	Case(s)
0️⃣ Macro Sector	Primary Division of the Economy	Represents the broadest economic category, traditionally following the three-sector model: Primary (Extraction), Secondary (Transformation), Tertiary (Services) — sometimes extended to Quaternary (Information) and Quinary (Governance/Decision).	Secondary Sector (Manufacturing and Construction)
0.5️⃣ Supersector	Broad Economic Grouping	Aggregates multiple sectors with related functions or outputs. Used to distinguish Goods-Producing vs Service-Producing activities or clusters like Industrial Supersector, Consumer Supersector, etc.	Goods-Producing Supersector
1️⃣ Sector	Broad Economic Domain	Major division within a supersector representing a key area of production or services.	Manufacturing Sector
2️⃣ Subsector	Functional Division Within a Sector	Groups industries sharing production processes, supply-chain relationships, or technologies.	Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
3️⃣ Industry Group	Intermediate Level	A more specific cluster of related industries within a subsector.	Motor Vehicle Manufacturing
4️⃣ Industry	Concrete Economic Activity	Defines a group of establishments producing similar products or services.	Automobile Manufacturing
5️⃣ Subindustry (or Product Class)	Most Specific Level	Focuses on particular products, market niches, or technological specializations.	Passenger Car Manufacturing

Heavy Industry

Industry	Description
Metallurgical Industry	Extraction and processing of metals (iron, steel, aluminum, copper, etc.) into usable industrial materials.
Machine Tool Industry	Manufacture of precision tools and equipment for shaping, cutting, and forming metals or other materials.
Shipbuilding Industry	Design and construction of ships, submarines, and marine structures for commercial and military use.
Heavy Machinery Industry	Production of large-scale equipment for mining, construction, energy, and manufacturing sectors.
Chemical Industry (Heavy Segment)	Production of base chemicals, fertilizers, and industrial materials used in multiple manufacturing sectors.
Energy Industry (Industrial Segment)	Generation and transmission of electrical power and industrial fuels supporting production activities.
Cement and Nonmetallic Mineral Industry	Production of cement, glass, ceramics, and other materials used in construction and infrastructure.
Railway Equipment Manufacturing	Production of locomotives, wagons, and rail infrastructure systems.
Aerospace and Defense Manufacturing	Production of aircraft, spacecraft, and defense equipment—often overlapping with advanced heavy manufacturing.

References

• Product Taxonomy
• Light industry
• Heavy Industry
• Gordon, Andrew. The evolution of labor relations in Japan: Heavy industry, 1853-1955. No. 117. Harvard Univ Asia Center, 1985.
• Amjadi, Golnaz, Tommy Lundgren, and Lars Persson. "The rebound effect in Swedish heavy industry." Energy Economics 71 (2018): 140-148.
• Kim, Minho, Munseob Lee, and Yongseok Shin. The plant-level view of an industrial policy: The Korean heavy industry drive of 1973. No. w29252. National Bureau of Economic Research, 2021.