Reshoring Initiative

Reshoring is gaining momentum throughout the country. Many companies have already repatriated some of their manufacturing efforts, and the Reshoring Initiative is continuing to spread the “return-manufacturing-home” message to help other manufacturers realize America is an advantageous place to produce goods.

 

The United States used to be the world’s industrial powerhouse, and Harry Moser, founder of the Reshoring Initiative and former president of machine tool maker GF AgieCharmilles, grew up experiencing its glory.

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Moser’s father, a manager, and grandfather, a foreman, worked for the once sprawling Singer sewing machine factory in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Moser himself spent summer vacations from high school and college working at the plant.

 

But times changed. The Singer factory is now gone as are a long list of other American manufacturing plants due to decades of offshoring. Not wanting to see any more U.S. manufacturing jobs disappear, Moser found it critical to start an industry-led initiative to prove offshoring is not always the best economical decision for companies.

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In fact, American companies considering sending their manufacturing offshore often don’t consider all of the costs, e.g. inventory carrying costs, travel costs to check on suppliers, intellectual property risks and opportunity costs from product pipelines being too long.

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The Reshoring Initiative, founded in early 2010, takes action by helping manufacturers realize that local production, in some cases, reduces their total cost of ownership of purchased parts and tooling. The Initiative also trains suppliers how to effectively meet the needs of their local customers, giving the suppliers the tools to sell against lower priced offshore competitors.