I have been to China twice as a customer. We were having our equipment built through a vendor in China. This equipment is for mining so it qualifies as heavy industry. We visited several forging and foundry facilities and it just about made me want to cry.
One evening we had banquet with the management staff of one of the foundries. I asked the G.M. how many foundry plants were in China? He laughed at the question and talked to his subordinates and came back, shrugged his shoulders and said at least 40,000.
This particular foundry had only been operating for five years. When we arrived at the plant the first thing I wanted to see (if it was there) was the pattern shop. I figured that with the plant being so new that they were having patterns made in western europe or the U.S. Not so. I couldn’t believe my eyes when we went into the pattern shop. The quality was unbelievable. I asked how they were able to transfer that craftmanship over so quickly? The interpeter said “we have 2 billion people to choose from”. He also stated that China has 43 Einstien’s and they just need to find them. They pay ~$365 a month for skilled labor. How in the hell do we compete against that?
Try and get a permit for a new foundry here in the U.S... Won’t happen.
Yup.
Most Americans are utterly oblivious, what we’re up against.
Distracted by stuff which doesn’t matter. While we eagerly give away - everything which does matter.
Try and get a permit for a new foundry here in the U.S... Won’t happen.
We can't beat that wage, but we could beat that wage + shipping if we could build a new foundry in this country, run it with non-union labor, and not have to deal with the excessive taxes and regulations that we now have in this country. Environazis, over-regulation, unions, and taxes add up to make productive industry all but impossible in the US these days.
Problem identifed. You nailed it.