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Why It's Time to Bring Manufacturing Back Home to the U.S.
Forbes ^ | February 2, 2015 | Thomas Roemer

Posted on 02/07/2015 5:52:17 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet

In the last decade, we’ve lost millions of manufacturing jobs to outsourcing. According to U.S. News and World Report, there are now 5.1 million fewer American manufacturing jobs than in 2001. The lure of low wages, tax advantages, and other cost savings has made for a seemingly straightforward calculus, and manufacturer after manufacturer, supported by intricate spreadsheets, has abandoned ship, until offshoring has become the emerging mantra of the new millennium. U.S. companies that still manufactured locally have slowly become outliers.

Interestingly, this dynamic now seems to be changing, as we’re beginning to see more manufacturing in the U.S. Total output from American manufacturing relative to gross domestic product is back to pre-recession levels, with more than half a million new jobs. According to the Reshoring Initiative, 15% of this job growth results from reshoring alone. There are many reasons for this shift back to the U.S.

More bang for the buck.

The first has to do with cost. It used to be cheaper to manufacture outside the U.S.; now the costs are now converging. In the manufacturing sector, the U.S. is still among the most productive economies in the world in terms of dollar output per worker. To be more specific, a worker in the U.S. is associated with 10 to 12 times the output of a Chinese worker. That’s not a statement about intrinsic abilities; it merely reflects the superior infrastructure of the United States, with its higher investments in automation, information technology, transportation networks, education, and so on....

(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Editorial
KEYWORDS: economy; employment; jobs; manufacturing
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Boatbuilding (pleasure boats) is still American Made...the only major company owned by foreign company is RecBoat Holdings, (Glastron) which is owned by the French company Bettaneau.


61 posted on 02/07/2015 7:56:10 PM PST by ExCTCitizen (I'm ExCTCitizen and I approve this reply. If it does offend Libs, I'm NOT sorry...)
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To: central_va
Importing cheap Chinese crap and retailing it doesn’t create wealth.

Tell that to the Walton family.

62 posted on 02/07/2015 7:56:12 PM PST by P-Marlowe (Saying that ISIL is not Islamic is like saying Obama is not an Idiot.)
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To: P-Marlowe
Are we as Americans willing to pony up the bucks to buy a widget made in America that costs $100 when we can get it from China for $5?

That is not how it works and I've explained to you that labor is only 10% of the retail cost of any item. You are being obdurate, again.

So if a guitar costs $1000.00 and labor is 10%(that is high labor is usually 7%) then a slave produced guitar still costs $900.00 plus shipping.

63 posted on 02/07/2015 8:01:19 PM PST by central_va (I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn.)
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To: ROCKLOBSTER
Of course we'll probably have to get engineering students from India and Pakistan to run them, as math and sciences are "courses Americans don't want to take."

As wages rise the students will take those STEM clases.

64 posted on 02/07/2015 8:02:18 PM PST by central_va (I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn.)
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To: P-Marlowe
Until Sam died, WalMart did promote American made products. When he died, WalMaet decided to go overseas...

A WalMart in CT had a listing on the wall where things came from...fishing tackle from Ft Smith Arkansas and tents in Kentucky...it was nice to look at...after Sam died... they painted it over...

65 posted on 02/07/2015 8:05:11 PM PST by ExCTCitizen (I'm ExCTCitizen and I approve this reply. If it does offend Libs, I'm NOT sorry...)
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To: P-Marlowe

Importing and retailing creates an tiny fraction of wealth compared to having the whole supply chain in the good ole USA. But I am talking to a Free Traitor so I don’t expect you to understand, brain washing and all.


66 posted on 02/07/2015 8:05:32 PM PST by central_va (I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn.)
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To: TADSLOS
LOL...
67 posted on 02/07/2015 8:09:46 PM PST by Chode (Stand UP and Be Counted, or line up and be numbered - *DTOM* -w- NO Pity for the LAZY - 86-44)
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To: central_va
Importing and retailing creates an tiny fraction of wealth compared to having the whole supply chain in the good ole USA.

A large chunk of the stuff that is manufactured in the United States is done by labor using Illegal Aliens and foreign workers who send back half their earnings to their home countries.

Go to any furniture factory or mattress factory or food factory or machine shop and count the people who speak english that are making that stuff. Cars are made in the US these days because 90% of the work is done by robots.

The only answer is to eliminate the income tax and fund our government using tariffs on foreign goods.

That means you will have to pay $200 for that pair of sneakers and $5000 for that 40 inch television.

Are you prepared to go there?

68 posted on 02/07/2015 8:11:16 PM PST by P-Marlowe (Saying that ISIL is not Islamic is like saying Obama is not an Idiot.)
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To: Chode
😃
69 posted on 02/07/2015 8:13:56 PM PST by TADSLOS (The Event Horizon has come and gone. Buckle up and hang on.)
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To: central_va
That is not how it works and I've explained to you that labor is only 10% of the retail cost of any item.

Obviously you haven't seen how a guitar is made.

So if a guitar costs $1000.00 and labor is 10%

If it costs $1000 then it was probably made in Mexico. If it costs $500 then it was probably made in China. If it costs $2500 to $3500, then it was probably made here.

70 posted on 02/07/2015 8:15:30 PM PST by P-Marlowe (Saying that ISIL is not Islamic is like saying Obama is not an Idiot.)
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To: P-Marlowe
That means you will have to pay $200 for that pair of sneakers and $5000 for that 40 inch television.

I think you are mentally retarded.

Labor cost is only ONE of MANY component in manufacturing. A TV cost breakdown consists of labor, materials, engineering, taxes, warehousing, overhead, equipment, machinery, electricity,profit , advertising, management. Historically labor is about 7% of the retail price. There is not gong to be a $5,000.00 TV. The cost may go up 3-5%. That is it.

71 posted on 02/07/2015 8:18:46 PM PST by central_va (I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn.)
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To: P-Marlowe

For the sake of discussion we are talking about mass produced items. You pick one of the most labor intense boutique items, guitars, and try to foist that as the bullwork of your argument. Nice try. No sale.


72 posted on 02/07/2015 8:24:30 PM PST by central_va (I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn.)
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To: central_va
I think you are mentally retarded.

Since when did Free Republic turn into Democrat Underground.

73 posted on 02/07/2015 8:24:45 PM PST by P-Marlowe (Saying that ISIL is not Islamic is like saying Obama is not an Idiot.)
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To: P-Marlowe

It creates wealth for the few at the expense of the many.

Thanks for illustrating that point!


74 posted on 02/07/2015 8:25:12 PM PST by crusher2013
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To: P-Marlowe
Since when did Free Republic turn into Democrat Underground.

When you signed up.

75 posted on 02/07/2015 8:25:29 PM PST by central_va (I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn.)
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To: P-Marlowe

Since when did Free Republic support sending American jobs to communist China?


76 posted on 02/07/2015 8:27:39 PM PST by Cringing Negativism Network (http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/c5700.html)
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To: central_va
For the sake of discussion we are talking about mass produced items.

I was talking about quality products that are MADE in the USA. If labor is only 7% of the cost of a manufactured good, then what difference does it make where it is manufactured?

77 posted on 02/07/2015 8:28:57 PM PST by P-Marlowe (Saying that ISIL is not Islamic is like saying Obama is not an Idiot.)
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To: P-Marlowe
I was talking about quality products that are MADE in the USA. If labor is only 7% of the cost of a manufactured good, then what difference does it make where it is manufactured?

Exactly! Why off shore our nations wealth creation engine to save 2-3%? You get it! What we are doing is stupid.

78 posted on 02/07/2015 8:32:29 PM PST by central_va (I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

We’re in Toffler’s third wave, but our profits from technological advances isn’t sufficient enough to make up for the loss of the blue collar manufacturing jobs.

On top of that we keep giving the family jewels away as gestures of good will and good intent.


79 posted on 02/07/2015 8:55:25 PM PST by Usagi_yo (It's not possible to give success. Only opportunity. Success is earned on it's own right.)
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To: Cringing Negativism Network

Which jobs are those? Making shoes?


80 posted on 02/07/2015 9:34:47 PM PST by P-Marlowe (Saying that ISIL is not Islamic is like saying Obama is not an Idiot.)
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