Manufacturing could return in abundance: not so,
manufacturing jobs of the routine
sort. Automation, steadily advancing already is
likely to accelerate. If America gears up to
exclusive use of shale gas in its power stations
in the coming years and is thus able to reduce
its electricity costs dramatically then
automation versus manual (or mental) dexterity
will not only be enhanced but also different
automated systems will become increasingly
competitive with one another. Corporations whose
policy it is to improve the versatility of its
automatic machinery frequently will gain at the
expense of more sluggish corporations.
America is by far the leading country in training
high-level software engineers and in its number
of experienced software managers. American
corporations still remain as the initiators and
administrators of the most complex supply chains
in the world involved in making consumer goods.
It would be relatively easy for American
corporations to withdraw the chains into America
segment by segment. With 35,000 wells producing
shale gas already, American corporations could be
the first to use the cheapest electricity with
the maximum number of automation R&D units.
Keith
Although China's universities churn out more
software graduates at humdrum degree level, America
At 02:24 09/12/2012, you wrote:
From: NYTimes.com [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Friday, December 07, 2012 11:15 AM
Subject: Bits Daily Update: Experts Are
Skeptical About a Renaissance of U.S. Manufacturing
<http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=4z5Q7LhI+KVBjmEgFdYACHCpQxp3Fo5Z&campaign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc53066c386be797f>
The New York Times
<http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=YFuu/A194QEKjxV/ugpm0k9anQA2MM49uGjfpwFXqTNtwqwGZ31I+fg6e6CnwRvZl32AtuE5QMIGtt4xn1ujaYYhIgEInWrm&campaign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc53066c386be797f>
[]
Friday, December 7, 2012
For the latest updates, go to
<http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=4z5Q7LhI+KVBjmEgFdYACG+iXiIGaiV2QSkP++TJHGXtUAcZX98zebJFa/JdjcawunJtZIT1fBd5F7vVusAlsA==&campaign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc53066c386be797f>nytimes.com/bits
»
Daily Report
<http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=YFuu/A194QEKjxV/ugpm0k9anQA2MM49IhNWGFarU5G4vJSzOhBgRkaCg1tMG/GmzIfpFiI11IUHgEEeogAe+nqL9rNMoJpgwkG9npxVlRtI3NtTK6Lr/BSjtEtmmhy9rLVj7q1Pc61Q3V8TVj4rt6PSvoGGTXtNt7w8NbQDMxvy4F7tzBqnEeFWKTRx8gfk2O/PH2kPRUs=&campaign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc53066c386be797f>Experts
Are Skeptical About a Renaissance of U.S.
Manufacturing | Apple plans to join a small but
growing number of companies that are bringing
some manufacturing jobs back to the United
States, drawn by the growing economic and
political advantages of producing in their home
market,
<http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=4z5Q7LhI+KVBjmEgFdYACPLKh239P3pgumqrnQdLD4pH+ykfX3VtzThh+FfPaZtpUrBeOrTBWLNCVQHAYSCK6I1RnAV0jf7O8/Buis63XogEPt5p3n4GBi+UGADt5ph4QQsgDIjkyjmt8TxfRODAGCh+6YpVRsJcCluD6CI7RWIGxedGp5dUDw==&campaign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc53066c386be797f>report
Catherine Rampbell and Nick Wingfield in
Friday's New York Times. But some experts remain
skeptical that the move will inspire a broader
renaissance in American manufacturing.
On Thursday, Apple's chief executive,
<http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=vzewYO/FHLTwPZVO2nH9zd3pqc9G7QpdPk3reFpveyN4LX2H7iMYPKsKmghXRLWIjVgRdLdXtm6q+/y1JPs8T0RHg65D6vPYbpJvdmfj1ZltjZl8VyPPs4XWYCorCQUXwJCR5d5yIFvtUAcZX98zebJFa/JdjcawunJtZIT1fBd5F7vVusAlsA==&campaign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc53066c386be797f>Timothy
D. Cook, who built its efficient Asian
manufacturing network, said the company would
invest $100 million in producing some of its Mac
computers in the United States, beyond the
assembly work it already does in the United
States. He provided little detail about how the
money would be spent or what kinds of workers might benefit.
"I find it hard to see how the supply chains
that drive manufacturing are going to move back
here,"
<http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=4z5Q7LhI+KUK28t4lt/CPY627bBRgzPGcsPZVIMHRQbJK+gFibm+GVVkPm3sJd1H&campaign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc53066c386be797f>Andre
Sharon, a professor at Boston University and
director of the Fraunhofer Center for
Manufacturing Innovation, told The Times. "So
much of the know-how has been lost to Asia, and
there's no compelling reason for it to return.
It's great when a company says they want to
create American jobs - but it only really helps
the country if those are jobs that belong here,
if it starts a chain reaction or is part of a bigger economic shift."
Over the last few years, companies across
various industries, including electronics,
automotive and medical devices, have announced
that they are "reshoring" jobs after decades of
shipping them abroad. Lower energy costs in
America, rising wages in developing countries
like China and Brazil, quality control issues
and the desire to keep the supply chain close to
the gigantic American consumer base have all factored into these decisions.
Even so, the impact on the American job market
has been modest so far. Much of the work brought
back has been high-value-added, automated
production that requires few actual workers,
which is part of the reason America's higher
wages are not scaring off companies.
American manufacturing has been growing in the
last two years, but the sector still has two
million fewer jobs than it had when the
recession began in December 2007. Worldwide
manufacturing appears to be growing much faster,
even for many of the American-owned companies
that are expanding at home. General Electric,
for example, has hired American workers to build
water heaters, refrigerators, dishwashers and
high-efficiency topload washers, but continues
to add more jobs overseas as well.
Apple has not announced plans to move the
complex, faster-growing portions of its product
lines. Macs now represent a relatively small
part of Apple's business, accounting for less
than 20 percent of its nearly $36 billion in
revenue in its most recent quarter. The
company's iPad and iPhone products, which amount
to nearly 70 percent of its sales, will continue
to be made in low-cost centers of manufacturing
like China, mostly on contract with outside companies like Foxconn.
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