Arizona — 5+ Million to 8 Million Category Arizona cashed in on financial and business services projects on its way to earning a Silver Shovel for 2017. Leading the way in jobs promised was the expansion at Concentrix in Tempe. The strategy and analytics provider plans to add more than 1,500 to the payroll. Bank of the West will add a thousand new jobs at its campus in Tempe. In total, more than 2,000 additional jobs were promised in the business/financial services sector by Northern Trust, Brightside Benefit, and DexCom.

But the logistics sector was busy making announcements, too, led by the plan for 1,200 jobs at Chewy Inc., the online pet products retailer creating a distribution hub in Goodyear. United Parcel Service will also add jobs in Goodyear, as will packaging manufacturer Ball Corp., which unveiled plans for a metal beverage can plant. Meanwhile, Benchmark Electronics cited a strategic partnership with Arizona State University as one of the reasons it picked Tempe for its headquarters.

Indiana — 5+ Million to 8 Million Category The Hoosier state tapped into its traditional strength in logistics and its emerging strength in information technology for its biggest 2017 prizes on the way to earning a Silver Shovel. XPO Logistics Supply Chain picked a site just northwest of Indianapolis for a 1,000+-employee distribution hub, taking over a giant building that had been a book distribution center. To the west of Indianapolis, United Parcel Service will invest more than $260 million in a major expansion. And to the south, Dia Styling Co. found a site for a clothing e-commerce distribution center in Greenwood.

As for IT, India-based Infosys decided to land its new technology hub at the site of the former Indianapolis International Airport terminal. The company had already shared plans in 2017 to bring 2,000 jobs to Indianapolis, and when in April 2018 it decided precisely where, Infosys upped its potential employment total by another thousand jobs. Other Indiana projects built upon the state’s long history in automotive manufacturing, healthcare, and pharmaceuticals.

South Carolina — 5+ Million to 8 Million Category The big news driving South Carolina’s Silver Shovel had largely to do with the state’s ever-growing automotive sector. Volvo’s expansion plans near Charleston are slated to bring in 1,900 more jobs than originally planned at the site, and BMW’s Spartanburg plans are good for as many as another thousand. Beyond the assembly plants, there’s healthy growth among suppliers, too, ranging from Robert Bosch to BorgWarner to Gestamp.

But autos aren’t everything in South Carolina. Samsung Electronics America announced plans to make washing machines in Newberry, and just six months later started rolling appliances off the line. Trane announced an expansion of its Richland County operations that could ultimately more than double its job count. And orthopedic medical device maker Arthrex picked Anderson County for manufacturing operations that ultimately will provide work for a thousand.

Tennessee — 5+ Million to 8 Million Category In earning its Silver Shovel this year, Tennessee eagerly displayed the diversity of its manufacturing economy. Measured by number of jobs, the biggest deal was Tyson Foods’ choice of Humboldt for a chicken-processing plant that will eventually employ as many as 1,500 people. By dollars invested, the top prize was the billion-dollar expansion of Denso Manufacturing Tennessee’s operation in Maryville, where the company plans to add a thousand jobs making parts for electric cars. Textile Corp. of America promised a thousand jobs at a headquarters and manufacturing operation in Pikeville.

The diversity story continues the further down the list you look. There’s electrical appliance manufacturing in Clarksville, tire manufacturing in Dayton, food processing in Nashville, aluminum in Huntingdon, and clay building materials in Dickson. Beyond that, Philips North America relocated corporate offices to Nashville, and Amazon picked Memphis for another of its fulfillment operations.

MethodologyArea Development’s annual Gold and Silver Shovel Awards recognize states for their achievements in attracting high-value investment projects that will create a significant number of new jobs in their communities. We collected information from all 50 states about their top-10 job-creation and investment projects initiated in 2017 (only those projects that actually had monies invested, “broke ground,” began an expansion, started new hiring, etc. were considered). Based on a combination of weighted factors — including the number of new jobs to be created in relation to the state’s population, the combined dollar amount of the investments, the number of new facilities, the diversity of industry represented — five states achieving the highest weighted overall scores were awarded Area Development’s 2018 Gold Shovels in five population categories: 12+ million, 8+ to 12 million, 5+ to 8 million, 3+ to 5 million, and fewer than 3 million. Runners-up in each of these population categories were awarded 2018 Silver Shovels.