2 minute read
From the Publisher
Top of the Food Chain
MAKING AMERICA GREAT
For some, “Make America Great Again” is a slogan attached to an unpopular president. When they see or hear this phrase, it makes their blood boil. To others, it is a business philosophy created to shine a light on how America has become a victim of an unlevel playing field in the global economy. I understand how some just cannot stand the rhetoric, but at the core, who cannot get behind wanting America to be strong and prosperous?
Bringing manufacturing back to the US makes perfect sense. But I admit, it is not that easy. Certainly, everyone knows that supply chains are global and that it is nearly impossible to make everything in the land of the free.
The panel processing industry has been a global business from the very beginning. Panel processing technology (machinery) originated in Europe with the creation of particleboard. These producers maintain a global market share lead and have from the beginning. The manufacturers of 32 mm system hardware (as we old guys call it) are also European, with a global market share advantage. It stands to reason if anyone is going to invest in a modern panel processing facility in the United States, the investors are going to rely on a global supply chain even before they make their first product. Much of the raw material to make products is domestically produced, including particleboard, MDF, laminate and décor paper. After all, necessity is the mother of invention. Shipping particleboard from a different continent seems silly when the cost of shipping makes it unprofitable. That is, unless the value-added products have a distinct competitive advantage. There is a great deal of imported thermally fused laminate (TFL) consumed in this country. Why? Because the combination of décor, texture, and finish…the design…is worth the added expense. Design is an international language, unconstrained by borders and is the same cost anywhere on the planet. It is the definition of a level playing field.
If we are going to Make America Great Again, we must strive to be at the “top of the food chain,” lead by design, and control the final production of our products. A global supply chain will be involved, as we know, but there is no reason to farm out the final production to a foreign producer when it can be done domestically. For example, when a consumer orders an RTA bookcase online from Wayfair which is made entirely in China, American workers do not benefit.
If we can control the “top of the food chain” and produce the finished product here, other parts of the supply chain will follow and grow domestically.
Prepac Manufacturing just announced the construction of a new panel processing facility in North Carolina. Bravo! The 27 million-dollar, 260,000 square foot facility will employ over 200 new workers. Prepac is one of the fastest growing RTA manufacturers in North America. They take design seriously. It is a hallmark to their success. Prepac is a Canadian company, headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. The investment is considered a Direct Foreign Investment (DFI), but since they are within miles of the American border, that is close enough for me.
Prepac is striving to stay at the “top of the food chain.” I am confident others will follow. Let us keep it going.
