usa flashlights? would it really cost a lot more to make a flashlight in the usa?

[idleprocess]

I mean, all else equal, they (nor anyone else) don't have a fundamental principle to buy from overseas.

If you think that any US business wants to deal with language barriers, time zone barriers, exchange rate issues, having the delay to ship via water/containers, etc when they don't have to, then you are fooling yourself.

Not many people want to work in a factory anymore... especially making cheap consumer items.

Debating they why of this gets into the stuff of politics, but the what is that the infrastructure for the production of labor-intensive / lower-end consumer goods has receded from the US economy. The prior workforce has largely retired or moved on, the value proposition for prospective future candidates is not palatable, the suppliers are no longer present, and the labor advantage in other countries is too persuasive to ignore. What's manufactured here tends to be upper-end goods that are capital- or intellectual property-intensive to produce because that's where the US's advantage lies.

 

[turbodog]

For what it's worth, a very good friend of mine ran an injection molding plant for several years, making parts which retailed for pennies.... extremely low profit margins.

I think they let him run the plant as it was slated to be closed and sent to China (where other plants they have are located).

He was able to turn it around, without cutting staffing or pay rates, to such a degree that the plant's still open today and is a model plant for new processes.

Mfg in the US is not dead, but most are trying to kill it without realizing it.

 

[idleprocess]

For what it's worth, a very good friend of mine ran an injection molding plant for several years, making parts which retailed for pennies.... extremely low profit margins.

Injection molding is a tad capital-intensive (molds, injection machines). In the case of extremely inexpensive goods, the logistics of transporting inexpensive items long distances could greatly increase their price.

 

[richbuff]

... ... ...Flashlights are a shining example of... ...

Hahahahaha!!!!!

 

[turbodog]

Injection molding is a tad capital-intensive (molds, injection machines). In the case of extremely inexpensive goods, the logistics of transporting inexpensive items long distances could greatly increase their price.

Granted. My overall point is that it was possible to compete and win a war that was a foregone conclusion. The parts were small and cheap, but they were used by the container load. I don't want to say much more... you never know who is going to read these posts. Basically the structure was resistant to change, stuck in the 'tried and true' ways, and scared for the future.

I also worked for General Motors in another life... after being there, I was not surprised at all when they went bankrupt.

 

[idleprocess]

My overall point is that it was possible to compete and win a war that was a foregone conclusion.

Basically the structure was resistant to change, stuck in the 'tried and true' ways, and scared for the future.

The sectors of domestic small-scale manufacturing that are thriving compete on response and form long-term partnerships with their customers - advantages that an overseas manufacturer cannot match.

 

[fulee9999]

well yes, obviously, the manufacturing and labor costs in the US are way higher than a lot of asian countries.
this is also one of the reasons why there are no european flashlight brands, it's economically not viable.

 

[Lawman VII XIV]

I mean, all else equal, they (nor anyone else) don't have a fundamental principle to buy from overseas.

As long as it's cheaper to buy from overseas and cheaper for them to have their suppliers outsource from overseas, it will absolutely be a fundamental principle to buy overseas. If it were cheaper to buy here, that fundamental principle would change.

If you think that any US business wants to deal with language barriers, time zone barriers, exchange rate issues, having the delay to ship via water/containers, etc when they don't have to, then you are fooling yourself.

Who's trying to fool who? That's a different discussion of which I never entertained. Don't change the subject.

 

[KITROBASKIN]

I think turbodog is trying to say that the Mart of Wal would rather buy from US companies, if those companies could make decent stuff cheap like Asian countries.

 

[bykfixer]

"Would it really cost a lot more to make a flashlight in the USA" was the title.
In short, ounce for ounce, lumen for lumen the answer is yes it would.

Let's just take, oh I dunno a 1aa light made by Husky and sold at Home Depot for $8. If it were produced in America it would probably not be an $8 flashlight because of wages and pollution laws. But some of that depends on who was producing the light as well.

A facility without state of the art machinery would likely be less productive so cost per light would be higher. If it were a giant facility that had lots of robot technology, well thought out production lines and in house parts sources to ensure no delays take place waiting on things like springs or buttons it could quite possibly be competitive in cost after all the tarrifs and shipping costs of the overseas made units were factored in. But would likely still be a $9 or $10 light.

Trouble is, nowadays the giant factories are overseas anymore. In the past I've showed a photo of the "worlds biggest flashlight", which is outside of the worlds biggest flashlight factory, which is in China where tremendous amounts of product can be produced. But various brands are produced there. So until that sort of thing re-occurs on the island called America we'll probably never know the answer to the original question.

Encore pic.
But notice how crappy the air is. Cannot see it in the fuzzy pix but the two workers are wearing dust masks because the air they breath has so much soot in it. This was taken long before covid came along.

Another look at how bad the air is.
That my friends is one reason things from those countries can be made so cheaply. Lax pollution and labor standards.

 

[turbodog]

I think he missed the part where I explicitly said "all else equal" even though it's in his quote of my post.

 

[CelticCross74]

Mag and SF do pretty well from what I understand. As far as I know most if not all LED emitters are made in China. Cree for example is based in North Carolina yet their emitters are made in China. If I am wrong somebody feel free to correct me. I am quite pleased that Luminous SST etc. emitters are finally getting their due. Those as far as I know are also made in China. Osram. I got my first Osram light the new TN Catapult Mini. It throws like Tom freaking Brady. It has near ZERO spill but it is also very small yet smashes 88k easily. But of course it is made in China. Hmmm....

 

[LEDphile]

As far as I know most if not all LED emitters are made in China. Cree for example is based in North Carolina yet their emitters are made in China. If I am wrong somebody feel free to correct me.

Nichia has their manufacturing in Japan, and Osram has manufacturing in Malaysia and Germany. Neither has any significant production in China that I am aware of.