According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics - Census of Employment and Wages, out of 13,104 household furniture and cabinetry manufacturers in 2014, California topped the list with 1,428 shops, followed by Florida (1,073), New York (691), Texas (665), and North Carolina (643). Illinois (549), Ohio (499), Pennsylvania (471), Indiana (386), and Virginia (343). However, when it comes to number of employees in the field, North Carolina moves into the top spot, with 26,406, followed by California (21,509), Mississippi (16,098), Indiana (15,148), Texas (14,074), Wisconsin (10,403), Pennsylvania (9

Reshoring allows companies to take advantage of tax incentives, employ skilled workers and innovate while protecting their intellectual property. For some, the ability to operate facilities using inexpensive natural gas now makes U.S. locations far more cost-effective than ones abroad where electricity and coal are considerably more expensive. Eliminating import duties and reducing transportation costs can also improve profitability, enabling manufacturers to lower product prices and finance new R&D. In short, manufacturers are looking at the total cost of off-versus-re-shoring and seeing

Italy's ICMA San Giorgio (Milan, Italy), In collaboration with a leading European producer of cutting systems, has launched a lab-line unit for testing in Monroe, Michigan, USA (near Detroit). This pelletizing and compounding line unit, equipped with ICMA’s 50 mm diameter co-rotating extruder from the MCM high torque family, is particularly versatile and covers a wide range of compounds including techno-polymers and filled compounds. The line also comprises a gravimetric dosing system from Enginplast and a control system from Gefran, two well-known Italian companies that have teamed up with

Italy's INglass Srl recently broke ground on its first facility in the US, which will be located in Byron Center, Michigan. INglass Srl, an Italian maker of molds for the plastics industry is investing $17.6 million in the West Michigan project and plans to employ 109 people over the next four years. Facility highlights The 45,000-square-foot facility, located at 920 74th St. SW in Byron Center, will house INglass’s HRSflow division, which manufactures hot runner systems for plastic injection molding. The facility will feature significant roof windows and natural daylight, and will also

Thanks to assistance from Automation Alley, Michigan's largest technology business association, another international company is setting up shop in Southeast Michigan. Automation Alley International Business Center tenant Reply Inc., of Turin, Italy, has found a permanent home in Auburn Hills and is looking to hire local employees. Reply, part of the holding company Reply Group, is a consulting, systems integration, application management and business process outsourcing company that works in new communication networks and digital media. The company's top customers include Chrysler Group and

Italy's COORD3 Metrology has opened a North American Sales and Service Center in Wixom, Michigan. The company says the facility, which includes a CMM rebuild and manufacturing center, is a result of aggressive efforts to expand its reach globally and in North America, which it considers an important market. The company’s product line ranges from entry-level bridge-type CMMs to gantry-type designs for aerospace and wind energy applications. About COORD3 Metrology Since 1973 COORD3 has designed, manufactured and supplied Coordinate Measuring Machines (CMM) and innovative dimensional metrology

Becoming More Globally Competitive Mr. Perez, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Manufacturing and Services at the International Trade Administration, details the programs and policies that the ITA has implemented to strengthen U.S. manufacturers' global competitiveness and to enhance U.S. exports. This presentation was filmed at the "Fast Forward: Strategies for Solving Manufacturers' Most Challenging Problems" Machines Italia conference in Plymouth, Michigan on June 21, 2012.

If you rely on the mainstream news media to help you assess the U.S. economy’s health, Alan Beaulieu wants to bring you out of your depression. As president of ITR Economics, which regularly analyzes the GDP health of developed and developing countries, he suggests you put your crying towel away and buy yourself something. And if you have to borrow money, do it—as long as your company’s fiscally healthy. This is the message he left with attendees at a strategy session conference held yesterday, sponsored by Industry Week magazine and the Italian Trade Commission, and held at The Inn at St

When Peter Perez began his career in manufacturing four decades ago, companies had competitors across town or in their own state, but typically not outside the United States. Now, says Perez, deputy assistant secretary for manufacturing in the Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration, the competition is overseas. As a result, exports are "increasingly important to our economic health and to our growth." In 2011, U.S. exports totaled a record $2.1 trillion and represented more than 50% of the economic growth of the United States, Perez told manufacturers at the "Fast Forward

PLYMOUTH, MICH. -- A key to Chrysler Group's return to profitability is a plant performance improvement program developed by parent company Fiat SpA (IW 1000/87) , said Mauro Pino, the company's head of World Class Manufacturing at the Machines Italia manufacturing 3.0 conference in Plymouth, Mich., Thursday, June 21, 2012 Chrysler first implemented Fiat's program, called World Class Manufacturing , three years ago as a continuous-improvement system focused on all plant processes, including safety, maintenance and quality. As an offshoot of the program, Chrysler opened in January a learning