New York Industrial Retention Network

The New York Industrial Retention Network (NYIRN) is an economic development organization established in 1997 to strengthen New York City's manufacturing sector and promote sustainable development. In 2010, NYIRN consolidated with the Pratt Center for Community Development and is now a project of the Pratt Center.

NYIRN has worked with more than 2,100 local businesses employing 93,000 people. In many instances, NYIRN’s intervention has been crucial to keeping those companies and jobs in New York City. Its research and advocacy led to the creation of New York City's Industrial Business Zones, the establishment of funds to help secure and improve manufacturing space, and the growth of green manufacturing in the city.

As new entrepreneurs making everything from salsa to shoes emerge alongside longstanding industrial businesses, NYIRN helps companies big and small access the services, information and support they need to thrive. The manufacturers NYIRN works with provide critical economic benefits to New York City, while benefiting themselves from their urban locations. Urban centers favor 21st-century production: built on supple, peer-to-peer networks, rather than large, vertically integrated, multi-tiered entities. Synergies between these decentralized networks promote the spillovers and knowledge-sharing that not only help businesses innovate, but in turn also help build stronger, more adaptable urban economies. Local manufacturers are indispensable partners to other industries, forging strong linkages within metropolitan economies and generating multiplier effects within and across the region.