We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.
  • INDUSTRY PRESS ROOM
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • MEDIA FILE
  • Create Account
  • Sign In
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Free Newsletters
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC
    • Podcast
    • Webcasts
    • Blogs
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Global Logistics and Risk
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • Parcel Forum 2022
    • MODEX 2022
    • Upload Your Video
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC
    • Podcast
    • Webcasts
    • Blogs
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Global Logistics and Risk
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • Parcel Forum 2022
    • MODEX 2022
    • Upload Your Video
Home » The return of manufacturing
big picture

The return of manufacturing

March 12, 2017
David Maloney
No Comments

I live in Pittsburgh, a city that was once the poster child for industrial America. It is not called the "Steel City" for nothing. For much of the last century, the region was an industrial powerhouse, churning out the steel that built the nation. Then came the 1980s, and the Steel City became a Rust City.

Plants neglected for decades became too expensive to upgrade. Manufacturers claimed that labor costs were too high to compete and began sending jobs to nonunion facilities in other states or overseas. Their counterparts throughout the country quickly followed suit, abandoning our shores for cheaper labor elsewhere.

With the advent of the new administration in Washington, we hear great hope that the kind of manufacturing jobs we lost in the last few decades will come back.

They won't. At least not like they once were.

Yes, manufacturing will begin to return, but it will not be due to the threat of tariffs and political bullying. It will be because manufacturing in America makes sense again. The difference now is that automation can make manufacturing at home competitive once more.

Several factors provide the perfect atmosphere for automation's growth. First, the rise of a middle class in China and elsewhere means that overseas labor is no longer the bargain it once was. Second, there have been huge advances in computing power, with costs that continue to drop. Likewise, developments in areas like onboard intelligence, vision systems, 3-D printing, and the Internet of Things all promote the growth of automation.

Developments in the robotics industry are providing new tools for modern automation. The International Federation of Robotics expects that 1.4 million new industrial robots will be put to work in factories worldwide within the next two years. That's a huge increase, considering there are just 2.6 million in use today. To underscore this trend, IDC Research predicts that by 2020, some 30 percent of tech companies will have a person identified as "Chief Robotics Officer."

As for Pittsburgh, it's a Rust Belt city that had to learn to reinvent itself. Today, it is a leader in developing robotics, thanks in large part to research at Carnegie Mellon University and the many robotics companies it has spawned.

While old-style manufacturing jobs will not return, there is great potential for job growth in modern factories where people and automated equipment work together (you can read about one such factory here). However, these will require employees with different skill sets from those needed in the past.

As a nation, we need to concentrate our educational efforts on the technical jobs needed for the future because competition will be fierce. Remember those 1.4 million new robots expected within the next two years? An estimated 40 percent of them will be headed to factories in China.

Material Handling Supply Chain Services Ergonomic & Assist Equipment
  • Related Articles

    the return of the big box

    the return of the Gladiator

    Will surging freight rates herald the return of the inflation boogieman?

Davidmaloney
David Maloney has been a journalist for more than 35 years and is currently the group editorial director for DC Velocity and Supply Chain Quarterly magazines. In this role, he is responsible for the editorial content of both brands of Agile Business Media. Dave joined DC Velocity in April of 2004. Prior to that, he was a senior editor for Modern Materials Handling magazine. Dave also has extensive experience as a broadcast journalist. Before writing for supply chain publications, he was a journalist, television producer and director in Pittsburgh. Dave combines a background of reporting on logistics with his video production experience to bring new opportunities to DC Velocity readers, including web videos highlighting top distribution and logistics facilities, webcasts and other cross-media projects. He continues to live and work in the Pittsburgh area.

Recent Articles by David Maloney

Is data fact?

InPerson interview: Rob McKeel of Fortna

In Person: Steve Beverly of Penske

You must login or register in order to post a comment.

Report Abusive Comment

Most Popular Articles

  • Schneider welcomes first battery-electric truck

  • Fred Smith is not worried about Amazon

  • RJW LOGISTICS GROUP EXPANDS RETAIL LOGISTICS OPERATION TO DALLAS

  • Maersk deploys indoor drones for warehouse inventory counts

  • Outlook 2023: What’s in store for logistics/supply chain?

Now Playing on DCV-TV

5afe63a5 7125 4318 b851 1e5738df1c91

Patterson Fan Co. | HVLS V-Series Ceiling Fan | Staging Area Air Movement

DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
The Patterson V-Series is a high-volume, low-speed industrial ceiling fan that is designed to circulate a lot of air at a very low speed. These fans, ranging in diameters of 8’ all the way to 24’, are perfect for large, open spaces such as staging and shipping areas. One 24’ fan can generate a cooling effect of 6 –...

FEATURED WHITE PAPERS

  • The five best applications for robotic lift trucks in warehouse environments

  • Fulfillment Facility Improved Efficiencies by 4x

  • 3PLs: Complete Orders Faster with Flexible Automation

  • Reusable Packaging for the New Wave of Supply Chain Automation

View More

Subscribe to DC Velocity Magazine

GET YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTION
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • NEWSLETTERS
  • ADVERTISING
  • CUSTOMER CARE
  • CONTACT
  • ABOUT
  • STAFF
  • PRIVACY POLICY

Copyright ©2023. All Rights ReservedDesign, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing