|
My guess would be that it starts with the assumption that "China is cheaper", and that makes for an easy story to tell to investors "we're making XYZ in China!". The second you say "we're making it in Texas", it opens you up to questions of "isn't that expensive?" On the face of it, I'm sure the up-front quote from a Chinese manufacturer is cheaper than something in the USA. Where costs skyrocket is when something goes wrong: the parts are wrong, the products aren't ready on time, something was done incorrectly, etc. If you don't have a manufacturer you can trust, one of those will happen, and is almost impossible to diagnose from the US. Even if all of that works out, there are other things to consider: costs (and time) of shipping. Want it in a week? Well, get ready to pay. Even if you ship it air freight consolidated, it's still not cheap. If you want it on a boat, there's a good chunk of time to think about. On top of THAT, there are all sorts of fun import tariffs and such to deal with (at least on the US side). Get ready to front money for an import bond, for starters! And there may already be some hidden costs of importing into the US: if you use some TI parts that have to be imported into China, you're going to be paying taxes twice. A lot of those things are likely not looked at in the low quote from a Chinese manufacturer. They're costs that can/will show up later along the line. |
I suspect that if one has a secondary goal of increasing local employment and benefitting the local economy, then the PR side could be managed in a way that allays that. It would have to walk a thin line bordering the exploitation of the underclass in blighted urban areas.
Even if all of that works out, there are other things to consider: costs (and time) of shipping. Want it in a week? Well, get ready to pay. Even if you ship it air freight consolidated, it's still not cheap. If you want it on a boat, there's a good chunk of time to think about.
Maybe a "hybrid" approach would have tremendous benefits? How about an organization of local makers that also had language and cultural skills to enable it to work closely with and maintain solid relationships with reliable manufacturers in China? (Or maybe Mexico?) Local workers would handle prototyping and rush orders, but work with foreign manufacturers to reduce the cost as volumes increased. Such an organization could also be used to economically empower people in the local community. (Such efforts work most reliably when small numbers of new members can be acculturated by the majority of established members.)
On top of THAT, there are all sorts of fun import tariffs and such to deal with (at least on the US side). Get ready to front money for an import bond, for starters! And there may already be some hidden costs of importing into the US
My experience of several years ago, bringing a chinese-made laser cutter to my old hackerspace, is that all of the small-time people flaunt most of the customs stuff. In fact, if you are concerned with the possible jail time for not obeying this or that regulation, your friends in China may well tell you, "Yes, of course," on the phone then just blow you off, knowing you won't get caught and not wanting to pay the fees and bother with paperwork. (Also saving you some money in the process.)