Entrada Group Podcasts: Economist and Author on North American Manufacturing Perception Versus Reality
October 29, 2014 (Austin, TX) – Entrada Group presents the latest installment of its offshore manufacturing podcast series: “Why American and Canadian Manufacturing Aren’t Dead.”
In this podcast, Doug Donahue, Principal and Vice President of Business Development for Entrada Group, interviews Joe Atikian, economist and author of “Industrial Shift: The Structure of the New World Economy.” Atikian is one of the voices challenging the common sentiment that American manufacturing is on a downward spiral. He feels some new perspective is needed.
“The key reason that I started to question the so-called decline of manufacturing, is that real output is growing and it’s growing just about everywhere in the world,” Atikian said. “Basically our attitude toward agriculture and manufacturing should be changing. We should shift our views because we don’t have many people involved in agriculture anymore, but nobody says that we should go back to harvesting corn by hand just to get jobs back.”
In the podcast, Atikian examines the historical and structural factors contributing to Mexico’s manufacturing strength, comparing the country’s growth today to the transition experienced by a now-developed Asian manufacturing powerhouse. At the same time, he feels Mexico has room for further industrial expansion, noting that in rail, for example, Mexico has just “one-tenth of the railway density of the United States,” as well as just half the expressway density of the US.
Atikian and Donahue also explore how industrial output in the US and Canada have doubled since the 1970s; why automation is more responsible for shifts in modern manufacturing than outsourcing; and the competitive advantages of Mexican manufacturing.
In the podcast, Atikian, who has a background in utilities and auto engineering, uses an “economics first” viewpoint to question common assumptions about manufacturing around the world. His most recent book explores the interplay between three key sectors: manufacturing, agriculture, and services, and how changing attitudes toward each affect the economy as a whole.
Note to editors: Your readers may download the podcast audio file and transcript at www.entradagroup.com/podcasts (registration required). Journalists may request the full audio or transcript (as well as a shortened audio version) for publication, citing Entrada Group as the source, by contacting us, above.
About Entrada Group
Headquartered in Texas, Entrada Group partners with international manufacturers seeking to enhance their competitiveness in the global market by swiftly and easily establishing a cost-competitive production facility in Central Mexico to serve North and South American, as well as European, markets. On behalf of the manufacturer, Entrada Group assists with the strategic, legal and practical requirements of setting up operations in Mexico, and also provides ongoing production support (General & Administrative) services, which leaves the client free to focus fully on its key competency: manufacturing great products.
Contact
Cameron Heffernan
Mach Media
Phone (US): +1 315-395-3374
cameron.heffernan@machmediagroup.com
Taunya Renson-Martin
Mach Media
Phone (Europe): +32 9 26 20 330
taunya.renson@machmedia.be
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