Manufacturing Is Coming Back to the U.S.
Martin Engster on what he heard from manufacturers, machine builders, and vendors at IMTS and other machine tool shows: production is coming back to the United States — and why that's good news for the industry.
Manufacturing in the U.S. seems to be picking up, and I'm seeing signs of it firsthand.
I've talked with several companies this year and attended a couple of machine tool shows in Chicago. Most recently, I was at IMTS, one of the largest machine tool shows in the world.
In talking with vendors, manufacturers, and machine builders, I kept hearing about companies bringing production back to the United States. Some are moving work from other countries and putting that production back here.
From where I sit, that's good news for manufacturing.
For a company like ours, the impact doesn't always happen right away. We repair spindles, so we're further down the line. New machines usually have warranties, and those machines need time in service before companies like ours start seeing the repair work. That means there can be a delay between growth in manufacturing and growth in repair work.
But when more machines are running and more parts are being made here, I see that as a positive sign for the industry and for the companies that support it.
