American manufacturing is often spoken about like its ancient history. Of course, it wasn’t until the 1970-1980s that companies started looking overseas for cheaper, less-regulated labor and production. One of the many lessons that the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us is that there are significant drawbacks to offshore manufacturing.
Pandemic’s Impact on Manufacturing
Even before the virus took hold in the U.S., its impact was being felt by American companies. In February 2020, a Thomas Industrial Survey showed that 71% of respondents had concerns about disrupted shipping and logistics due to the rapidly-spreading pandemic.
As the popular saying goes, if we do not learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it. So it should be no surprise that 47% of North American manufacturers are now looking to source domestically (Thomas). When factoring in the shrinking cost savings of overseas manufacturing along with the increasing uncertainty and risk, many companies are realizing that the offshore approach is no longer worth the trouble.
Advantages of Domestic Manufacturing
If you’re still on the fence, here are 12 reasons to reshore your outsourced manufacturing.
- Lower risk for disruption in the supply chain
- Shorter lead time and more accurate delivery fulfillment
- A more skilled, regulated workforce for better product quality and consistency
- Less exposure to geopolitical events such as tariffs
- Find a partner that’s better equipped and more familiar with industry compliance issues
- Be better prepared to quickly respond to customer or industry demands
- Protect your intellectual property
- Better communication and access to expertise to enhance innovation and product differentiation
- Marketing opportunity of “Made in the USA” label
- Rising costs of offshore manufacturing
- Potential local tax incentives
- Reduce unemployment and income inequality in the U.S.
Finding the Right Domestic Manufacturing Partner
At Tapecon, we’ve been helping to keep our customers up and running through these uncertain times. As a designated “essential” business in New York State, our operations have been uninterrupted and very few of our raw materials have been impacted. At the same time, we’ve implemented protocols to keep our employees safe and facilities as clean as possible.
Reshoring manufacturing—not just in times of crisis but permanently—is good for both your company and the country. If you’re looking for a domestic manufacturer, we look forward to sharing how Tapecon can be a trusted partner.
Get Started with Domestic Outsourced Manufacturing
At Tapecon, we have over 100 years of experience helping customers solve their complex product challenges. Learn more about our outsourced manufacturing capabilities.
Related CONTENT
Check out some of our other pieces about outsourced manufacturing:
- A Case Study in Outsourced Manufacturing -Learn more about how an active package manufacturer successfully delegated its converting and printing operations to Tapecon in just ten months realizing several benefits related to supply chain, costs and business growth.
- Why a Feasibility Study is Critical for Business Process Outsourcing
- 7 Benefits of Outsourced Product Manufacturing
- 3 Types of Outsourced Engineering Services for New Product Introduction
- 12 Reasons Why Now’s the Time to Reshore Your Outsourced Manufacturing
- The Outlook for Outsourced Medical Device Manufacturing in 2023 – and Beyond
- The Benefits and Limitations of Manufacturing Cells
- Implementation and Common Techniques of Manufacturing Cells
- How Manufacturing Cells Impact the Workforce
