The US' National Tooling and Machining Association (NTMA) and Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) said on April 15 that the ‘re-shoring' initiative they launched to bring manufacturing jobs back to the US is quickly gaining momentum, with numerous member companies announcing they have won back contracts that were previously off-shored, and larger manufacturers disclosing plans to bring production back to the US.
According to an official statement, the effort will receive a further boost from the 2010 NTMA/PMA Contract Manufacturing Purchasing Fair: Re-Shoring to Bring US Manufacturing Jobs Back Home, to be held on May 12 at the Hyatt Regency Irvine Hotel in Irvine, California. Companies already producing or supplying domestically are also welcome.
Re-shoring (also called onshoring and backshoring) means bringing lost manufacturing jobs back to the US by uniting large manufacturers with competitive domestic suppliers. It is a non-protectionist and private sector-driven way to reduce imports (and the trade deficit), increase ‘net exports' and create jobs. Going local can reduce a company's total cost of ownership (TCO) and offer a host of other benefits while bringing US manufacturing jobs back home.
The statement also said that a recent GrantThornton survey found only half of the firms surveyed (49 percent) found offshoring had produced a positive return on investment. As a result, 59 percent of companies moving facilities closer to home are locating these operations in the United States.