Supply Chain
Reaping the Rewards of Reshoring
Bringing offshore work back in-house results in streamlined processes, clearer communications and quicker delivery times.
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What's to Blame?
We all know that the skills gap is a huge problem, but who or what is to blame? Some look to college as the source of the problem, but have we forgotten the fact that until a year ago this industry (and virtually all of manufacturing) was in a state of long-term and rapid decline? Shops were closing, business was rushing to China, schools were dropping classes due to lack of funding, and all of America was demanding "every day low prices." College was a choice that was (falsely in many cases) offered as an alternative to the seemingly dead-end choice of learning a trade. This situation was created by the free market, and it will only be solved by the free market. Let me explain.
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Moving from a Trickle to a Trend
I came across an article sharing a simple plan for how to propel the reshoring trend forward ... some very familiar concepts: (1) A more educated workforce to fill skilled labor gaps, and more Americans interested in careers in manufacturing at all levels; (2) More extensive use of automated assembly processes to limit the labor input of production; and (3) Tools to help companies evaluate their true total cost of ownership (TCO) when offshoring to model all costs and risks. It does seem like reshoring is getting a lot of play nowadays ... but I'm not complaining ... it's a good thing!
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Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) Analysis Works for Everything
At the recent amerimold 2012 show in Novi, MI, the opening keynote speaker was Harry Moser. For those of you not familiar with Mr. Moser, he is a retired executive from the machinery industry who now devotes his energies to the Reshoring Initiative. In short, Harry is trying to bring mold and die manufacturing back to the U.S. His argument is based on the concept that when you consider ALL of the costs involved in manufacturing a plastic part (not just the price of the mold), America is more competitive than places like China for many types of parts. Harry has developed a nifty little spreadsheet program that assists mold buyers in calculating the wide range of costs that they will incur when they choose to manufacture a part. This analytical process of identifying and evaluating all of the costs—now and in the future--goes by the name of Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), and moldmakers should also master this process.
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Top 10 Reasons to Bring Plastic Injection Molding Back to the U.S.
Much like the website of Harry Moser's Reshoring Initiative, the Rodon Group has published a paper explaining 10 benefits of reshoring your injection molding work--including increases production efficiency and product quality; insures your project complies with U.S. laws and regulations; saves on costs and leadtimes; and, offers waste reduction strategies as well as monetary benefits ... to name a few.
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Reshoring, For Sure
The Opening Keynote at the amerimold expo in Novi, MI, last week provided an update on the Reshoring Initiative founded by Harry Moser as well as some supporting data from Steve DeHoff of Stress Engineering Services. As a follow-up from the interest generated on this topic MMT and Harry Moser will be working on an article that involves readers customizing the TCO Estimator for molds. What we are looking for is a list of known factors that are not yet costed.
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Three Stories to Watch This Summer
For the past few years, North American moldmakers have been vigorously engaged in trying to cope with three industry-wide problems. These are: low-cost competition from China; a shortage of qualified workers entering the trade; and the rising costs of materials (i.e. tool steel) and labor (i.e. healthcare costs). These problems are far from solved. The future is far from certain. And moldmakers will continue to struggle with these issues for the foreseeable future. But just in case you are getting bored or uninspired with the challenges posed by these issues, here are three more storylines that will unfold this summer and which merit your attention.
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Join the “Should be Made in America” Campaign
The Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM)—a grassroots organization dedicated to raising awareness regarding the state of U.S. manufacturing—has launched a “Should Be Made in America” to help ensure that that taxpayer-financed federal, state and local infrastructure projects are made in America by American workers, reports Executive Director Scott Paul.
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Connect, Source and Collaborate
Sounds like the theme of our amerimold co-location with the NTMA Purchasing Fair and our kick-off keynote with Harry Moser of the Reshoring Initiative.
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Made in the USA, Sold in China!
The Publisher of MoldMaking Technology attended ChinaPlas in Shanghai, China, in support of U.S. manufacturers exhibiting there last month. The U.S. pavilion, consisted of 37 exhibitors mixed with moldmakers, molders and technology suppliers. There were a few other U.S. suppliers exhibiting in their own space as well throughout the more than 20 halls.
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