Did you know that more than 60% of all U.S. production has been transported overseas since the late 1970’s? Considering how rare it is to see the words “Made in the U.S.A.” printed on a product on consumer merchandise, you might be surprised that the amount of American goods that are manufactured overseas isn’t closer to 95%.
Although most of the products that we see on store shelves are made in China, Taiwan, Vietnam, or some other country in the Far East, it is not without good reason. The cost of manufacturing product domestically had become so expensive by the 1970s that U.S. companies felt like they had no choice but to search for a solution to cut production cost and keep retail prices down.
While it is unfortunate that millions of manufacturing jobs have been lost to less expensive overseas electronic contract manufacturers, outsourcing electronic contract manufacturing has allowed companies to keep their costs down. As you know, the benefits of contract manufacturing has made it possible for the average American citizen to afford the latest smartphone, tablet, laptop, or other electronic devices that might cost at least twice enough if they were manufactured domestically.
In addition to the advantages of contract manufacturing for buyers, electronic manufacturing solutions have been good for businesses. This is because the pooling of resources and acquiring of large volumes of raw material allows companies to increase the rate of production and disseminate their products more quickly. This results in better overall customer services.
A lot of Americans get down on the offshore outsourcing of electronic contract manufacturing, but it has benefited each and every one of us substantially. The bottom line is you have to value most that which is good for the majority.