Manufacturing is Overrated

[2bighorn]

Originally posted by oboe
Switzerland, MiniD?  Special case?

Originally posted by MiniD
Yes

Special case? Not at all.

By % of GDP
----------------------
Switzerland:
agriculture: 1.5%
industry: 34%
services: 64.5%

USA:
agriculture: 1.4%
industry: 26.2%
services: 72.5%

By % of labor force
-----------------------
Switzerland:
agriculture 4.6%
industry 26.3%
services 69.1%

USA:
agriculture 0.7%
industry 22.7%
services 76.6%

[OIO]

"So what's the next base for an economy after agriculture, manufacturing, and service jobs?"


SPACE!

[Reschke]

I mentioned steel simply because it effects a vast majority of people here in the Birmingham, AL area such as the company I work for. After searching for 3 years for a steel mill to actually quote us on making pipe the requirement was to purchase 4 mill runs (roughly 4 million feet of pipe) of the pipe in order for them to change their tooling over to our tolerances. Plus we would have to eat the tooling costs on those 4 runs because they could not be consecutive. And we wonder why we can't compete on the world stage for steel prices.....I could care less about the steel from over in Asia but the European markets need the US now more than ever with the Euro being so much stronger than the Dollar. If we choose not to change the long term goal in US manufacturing we run the risk of falling into the same problems that faced us financially after WWI.

Yes I agree with Storch that chinese steel or korean steel is a super low quality but the steel that you see rolling out of Switzerland, Germany and Sweden is easily as good as any made here. Hell I have steel pipes that have lasted over 100,000 cubic yards (with highly abrasive concrete) being pumped through it at over 1200PSI and its all made in Germany and Switzerland.

[midnight Target]

One manufacturing job creates at least 3 other jobs. Sure we can build more with less, and so be it. But if we don't create a manufacturing base we become strictly importers.

The coolest thing about my industry is that it is pretty dang difficult to outsource it.

[rpm]

Didn't you guys hear that the Bush administration has classified McDonald's as manufacturing? We've got plenty of manufacturing jobs now.

[storch]

Originally posted by midnight Target
One manufacturing job creates at least 3 other jobs. Sure we can build more with less, and so be it. But if we don't create a manufacturing base we become strictly importers.

The coolest thing about my industry is that it is pretty dang difficult to outsource it.

What is your industry, pray tell.

[storch]

Originally posted by Reschke
I mentioned steel simply because it effects a vast majority of people here in the Birmingham, AL area such as the company I work for. After searching for 3 years for a steel mill to actually quote us on making pipe the requirement was to purchase 4 mill runs (roughly 4 million feet of pipe) of the pipe in order for them to change their tooling over to our tolerances. Plus we would have to eat the tooling costs on those 4 runs because they could not be consecutive. And we wonder why we can't compete on the world stage for steel prices.....I could care less about the steel from over in Asia but the European markets need the US now more than ever with the Euro being so much stronger than the Dollar. If we choose not to change the long term goal in US manufacturing we run the risk of falling into the same problems that faced us financially after WWI.

Yes I agree with Storch that chinese steel or korean steel is a super low quality but the steel that you see rolling out of Switzerland, Germany and Sweden is easily as good as any made here. Hell I have steel pipes that have lasted over 100,000 cubic yards (with highly abrasive concrete) being pumped through it at over 1200PSI and its all made in Germany and Switzerland.

I should have specified Asian steel.  euro steel is every bit the equal of US produced steel and often times better.  The prices make them uncompetetive for my consumption.

[rpm]

MT is in the RV business.

[Lye-El]

Originally posted by indy007


I have a small business that moved 600k in inventory last year. I never saw, nor touched the inventory. I pushed papers, provided a service, and collected my fee. What exactly am I oblivious to?

The first thing that comes to my mind is that a guy in India with an internet connection can do your job...for less money.

Anyway,  the plant I have worked at for the last twenty years is closing as have/are several others in the county that I live in. The jobs are going to Mexico, phillipines, and China.

One of the parts we manufactured were parts for the Hellfire missle, so I have to assume other military stuff is also going  to other countries to be manufactured. I wonder if this will come back to bite us in the future

[Mickey1992]

Can anyone guess what the largest US export by volume is?

[Holden McGroin]

Originally posted by Mickey1992
Can anyone guess what the largest US export by volume is?

CO2?

[Pongo]

And trade deficits do not matter. All those green backs  sitting in vaults in China and Saudi Arabia and Japan and Canada do not matter at all.

[Mickey1992]

Originally posted by Mickey1992
Can anyone guess what the largest US export by volume is?

Recycled paper pulp.

[john9001]

Originally posted by Pongo
And trade deficits do not matter. All those green backs  sitting in vaults in China and Saudi Arabia and Japan and Canada do not matter at all.

because they hold so much "worthless" paper they will do everything they can to ensure the dollar does not lose value.

if you owe the bank $100,000 they own you.

if you owe the bank $100 million , you own the bank.


abby normal

[Trell]

Originally posted by Lye-El
The first thing that comes to my mind is that a guy in India with an internet connection can do your job...for less money.

Anyway,  the plant I have worked at for the last twenty years is closing as have/are several others in the county that I live in. The jobs are going to Mexico, phillipines, and China.

One of the parts we manufactured were parts for the Hellfire missle, so I have to assume other military stuff is also going  to other countries to be manufactured. I wonder if this will come back to bite us in the future

Eds is outsourcing a lot of there Michigan jobs to Malaysia  is not just the call center jobs that are going.  I know they are outsourcing  planners as well.

You know the ones who order the 600k of merchandise that is then drop shipped to places like gm.....  that is not touched by that person.  who would then just collect her fee......