Since the last recession of 2003, the topic “Made in the USA” has become a flash point for much heated discussions, and has intensified during the “Great Recession” of 2008. Unfortunately, engineers and industrial designers often avoid this topic, unless they can speak anonymously, for fear of possible repercussions. So I was glad to see topic discussed in the blog of Melanie Conklin (see here).

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Because of my business as a product design consultant, I will occasionally received requests from clients looking for a domestic contract manufacturer that is able to contend with competitors in China.  I had read an article titled Battling China on Price in BusinessWeek magazine (May 13, 2009), and decided to look around at domestic manufacturers.  For this road trip, I was specifically looking for a plastic injection-molder.

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