Manufacturing 2.0
Rock River Valley manufacturing experts discuss the many facets of manufacturing: technology, education, training, events, people and any other aspects of this important segment of our economy. They’ll use this blog to get the word out and solicit feedback on local and global manufacturing. They hope to better engage our employers, employees and our future work force and increase their understanding of manufacturing. |
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October 22nd, 2009 at 10:00am Bob Trojan
Well, this depends on which side of the pond you are…here in the US, this makes our exports cheaper. But if you were to travel to Europe, it would be more expensive.
On the other hand, Europeans coming to the USÂ for holidays would find us pretty cheap.
The downside is that US assets (as in companies, land, condos) would find us a good bargain and we could be bought out pretty quickly. So what do you think?  Euro
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7 Comments Add your own
1. Jim Phelps | October 22nd, 2009 at 10:44 am
It is interesting to note that Western & Central Europe seems to be coming out of this recession quicker than the U.S.
Perhaps Chancellor Merkel’s hesitance to go deeply in debt with the German Economy by limiting the amount of the their “Bailout” was the right economic play?
2. QuentinK | October 22nd, 2009 at 12:15 pm
Of course we will be last out of the recession. Europe never incurred the debt that we did and still has a manufacturing base. We sent everything overseas and for some reason W sat waiting for the failed trickle down economic engine to kick in. His policies were even worse than Reagan’s which I thought impossible. We caused the global meltdown so it serves us right. Chancellor Merkel’s demand that we institute strict regulations on our financial institutions is spot on and long over due. Yet wall street is yelling for even less oversight. These morons don’t get it. They don’t understand their incessant greed IS the problem.
3. Bob Trojan | October 22nd, 2009 at 1:46 pm
Greed has been in America’s blood ever since Jefferson bought the Louisiana Purchase and continued with development of the West from the original 13 colonies. Most recently, the “ME” generation has worried only about “ME”. I wonder if the cycle will change as a result of the past year. Two signs I see are the personal savings rate is higher and personal debt is being reduced. That’s a LOT of consumer money coming out of the economy yielding a slower recovery than in past recessions.
4. Jim Phelps | October 23rd, 2009 at 3:20 pm
My wife, Janet, just got back from a business trip to Germany last night. So over some good German bread, mustard & meats I asked her about her trip.
One of the things she remarked was how nice the house were in Germany. I explained to her that the Germans say, and I’m translating here, “that the house come with golden door knobs.”
In Germany, things are build much more expensively on purpose: Families live in the same house, same town for gernerations. Often, couples move in with parents and stay there until the parents grow old enought to take over the part of the house the young couple is living in… and so on, and so on.
See, just like with the family arraingements, the industry, unions, and government make decisions with long-range planning and influence choices Germans will make in the future.
They do it collectively, as Germans.
That is what we lack…
5. Bob Trojan | October 23rd, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Jim;
All Europeans have for centuries built structures that last lifetimes. Look at all the centuries old structures that still stand today. I’ve traveled all across Europe and England and their mentality has been shaped by longevity. It is become their culture…to make things last.
What do we do? Planned obsolescence, built it cheap, make it from wood cause it’s faster. We have become a “throw-away society. We take technology and before you pay for it it’s obsolete.
Just think how many building contractors, housing and appliance producers and road workers would be put out of work with a European mentality?
I don’t disagree with their approach, but I don’t know how we will change our culture that keeps getting passed down generation to generation.
6. Jim Phelps | October 23rd, 2009 at 4:03 pm
Exactly; even look at the “tracking” system of education the Germans have. Realschul, Gymasium, and Technical School.
Just think if we trained our work force with that level of “precision.”
Locally a mistake in the early 1980’s was to get rid of “Vo-tech.”
Vocational/Technical school was the backbone of manufacturing work force here in the region. It is not to far of a leap to the understanding that removing this has hurt the workforce composition locally. And the damage of this decision from almost 30 years ago is readily apparent.
Bob; at what point to we actively point to the mistakes of the past and the historical aftermath/reprocussions and come to the conclusion that we must not repeat them?
7. Bob Trojan | October 23rd, 2009 at 4:12 pm
You may be aware that the ACE H.S. was started last year and is now growing. Their thrust is to educate kids in various vocations including manufacturing. Its a start. Look back when Thompson was Super…we took 150 administrators around 33 factories.
Look at today’s post about Mayor Manufacturing Coffee, he is keen on doing what is needed to encourage them. The new super will be asked to join in…I agree that there is a long way to go, but its not due to lack of anyone trying….much more is being done.
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