I think we all knew at some point that computers would have to start being built here to serve the US market better, and as it turns out, Lenovo is going to do it in the state of North Carolina. Why NC? Because that’s where there main operations offices are, along with a distribution center. Having all those operations close to each other saves operating costs for the company.
Is “everything made in China” coming to an end?
No, but it’s starting to.
In the way American commerce works, we seem to have this nasty habit of “putting all our eggs into one basket” where everything is made in a specific country for several years (everywhere except here of course), then that well figuratively dries up and after that manufacturing is moved to another country, several years go by, that well dries up, etc. Rinse, cycle, repeat.
What’s changed this time around (at least in the electronics industry) is that things like laptops, tablets and smartphones are to the point where they can be manufactured in a very “green” way. A big reason why more electronics aren’t built here is because of the US’s very-strict pollution laws, and that costs corporations a lot of money. With the way electronics are built now, a company can manufacture electronics here while still being “green” and turning a profit at the same time. This is a very big deal because it means large electronics manufacturers like Lenovo can set up shop on our shores, build here, sell here and make it all work.
Hopefuly other electronics manufacturers will follow in Lenovo’s footsteps. We desperately need the jobs, and I don’t think anyone would disagree that owning a real quality-made Made-in-USA computer (tablet, phone or laptop) would give us a good sense of national pride.
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I’m a little skeptical that companies set up like this would really be producing “Made in USA” products, as opposed to merely “Assembled in USA”. Either way it’s a good starting point, of course.
Well, thank you, Debbie Downer.
Heh, sorry. Just call ‘em as I see ‘em. To be fair I don’t follow the manufacturing world enough for my opinion to be taken very seriously. That was purely a skepti-sense reaction.
The Miami, Florida facility of Dell’s Alienware subsidiary remains in operation, while Dell servers (its most profitable products) continue to be produced in Austin, Texas.