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by Intermernet 2600 days ago
Just wondering how the economics of us manufacturing handles global logistics. Can a product made in the USA ship to the rest of the world at a price competitive to those made in China?

I honestly don't know the answer to this. If it's "yes", then bring on us production!

I ask because I'm in Australia, and we're a wierd case when it comes to global logistics.
3 comments
faet 2600 days ago
Textile manufacturing is coming back to South Carolina, USA as it's cheaper to produce in SC than in China. Along with favorable trade agreements they're able to access/use South American markets for cheaper as well.

There are fewer jobs than in the past in part due to automation.

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/article91482...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/08/04/why-i...

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bluGill 2600 days ago
Depends very much on the product.

The more a factory produces the more automation pays off: it takes a big up front investment to pay for the machines, but once the machines are working it costs very little to make more.

Shipping has a bunch of other issues. Wars, border issues, weather, [long list skipped] all interrupt shipping, and the farther something needs to go the more likely it is one of these interrupts your shipment. Everything that depends on that is in turn disrupted.

Cars are best assembled near where they are used because when fully there is a lot of empty space (the cabin). The alternator for that car can be made pretty anywhere, it is small and dense and so shipping costs are not high. Most other products have elements of each along the way.

Large companies often have a large department dedicated to mapping out logistics. It is no easy to make sure that all the parts needed to build their widget arrive on time.

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Cthulhu_ 2600 days ago
It depends; I believe it works really well for e.g. consumer electronics because of the value per volume, but as another commenter mentioned, not so much for cars. Car parts on the other hand are much more efficiently packaged, so for example Tesla has an assembly plant in Tilburg, NL.
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