First paragraph, you got that right Keith.
REH From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Keith Hudson Sent: Sunday, December 09, 2012 8:00 AM To: RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME DISTRIBUTION, EDUCATION Subject: Re: [Futurework] FW: Bits Daily Update: Experts Are Skeptical About a Renaissance of U.S. Manufacturing 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] <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&cam paign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc530 66c386be797f> The New York Times <http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=YFuu/A194QEKjxV/ugpm0k9anQA2MM49uGjf pwFXqTNtwqwGZ31I+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&instanc e_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc53066c386be797f> nytimes.com/bits » Daily Report Experts Are Skeptical About a Renaissance of U.S. Manufacturing <http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=YFuu/A194QEKjxV/ugpm0k9anQA2MM49IhNW GFarU5G4vJSzOhBgRkaCg1tMG/GmzIfpFiI11IUHgEEeogAe+nqL9rNMoJpgwkG9npxVlRtI3NtT K6Lr/BSjtEtmmhy9rLVj7q1Pc61Q3V8TVj4rt6PSvoGGTXtNt7w8NbQDMxvy4F7tzBqnEeFWKTRx 8gfk2O/PH2kPRUs=&campaign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id= 5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc53066c386be797f> | 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, report <http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=4z5Q7LhI+KVBjmEgFdYACPLKh239P3pgumqr nQdLD4pH+ykfX3VtzThh+FfPaZtpUrBeOrTBWLNCVQHAYSCK6I1RnAV0jf7O8/Buis63XogEPt5p 3n4GBi+UGADt5ph4QQsgDIjkyjmt8TxfRODAGCh+6YpVRsJcCluD6CI7RWIGxedGp5dUDw==&cam paign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc530 66c386be797f> 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, Timothy D. Cook <http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=vzewYO/FHLTwPZVO2nH9zd3pqc9G7QpdPk3r eFpveyN4LX2H7iMYPKsKmghXRLWIjVgRdLdXtm6q+/y1JPs8T0RHg65D6vPYbpJvdmfj1ZltjZl8 VyPPs4XWYCorCQUXwJCR5d5yIFvtUAcZX98zebJFa/JdjcawunJtZIT1fBd5F7vVusAlsA==&cam paign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc530 66c386be797f> , 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," Andre Sharon <http://p.nytimes.com/email/re?location=4z5Q7LhI+KUK28t4lt/CPY627bBRgzPGcsPZ VIMHRQbJK+gFibm+GVVkPm3sJd1H&campaign_id=688&instance_id=23427&segment_id=42 055&user_id=5f5a69e70bdbc8fbc53066c386be797f> , 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. _______________________________________________ Futurework mailing list [email protected] https://lists.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework
_______________________________________________ Futurework mailing list [email protected] https://lists.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework
