2022年11月7日

編者按:製造業還是會回來的。我們的編輯伊麗莎白·麥克布萊德(Elizabeth MacBride)說:本周，我們啟動了一個新的報道項目:深入二線城市。在Armory Square Ventures的支持下，我們正在深入報道影響美國中部城市的企業家精神和經濟問題。我們的第一站是匹茲堡。去年10月，我訪問了這座城市，發現了一個關於另一種製造業的故事:電池和機器人，而不是鋼鐵。在我們關於匹茲堡的報道中，我們關注了包括機器人、生物技術和其他專業領域在內的新型製造業的情況，以及它是否能夠提供大量高薪工作崗位。有三個因素在起作用。對全球化更現實的看法。“全球化”的理念本應為上世紀80年代因自動化而失去的高薪製造業工作提供解決方案，但卻加劇了這種損害，因為製造業被轉移到其他國家。“沒有人想聽羅斯·佩羅特的話，因為他耳朵很大，但在很多方麵，他是對的，”科羅拉多大學博爾德分校利茲商學院戰略、創業和運營部門的教學教授古魯穆爾蒂·拉維桑卡(Gurumurthi Ravishankar)說。國家安全問題。 The Biden Administration announced $52.7 billion of funding for the semiconductor chips industry. Intel announced a $20 billion factory in Youngstown, Ohio, and Micron announced it would build a plant and make a $100 billion investment in Syracuse, N.Y. (Biomanufacturing is getting a much smaller federal boost of $2 billion.) The business case for U.S. manufacturing makes some sense. The balance between labor, capital and equipment is different today, notes Ravishankar. There are new supply chain concerns. There are benefits of manufacturing close to the consumers. Those, combined with the recent emotional fallout from the pandemic and a world that seems less friendly to the ideals of openness, could push manufacturing back to the United States, said Ravishankar. “It’s like this light bulb went off,” he added, “It would be a heck of a lot easier if this were made here.” It won’t, however, be easy or quick, he said. “Talking about reshoring sounds good. It makes for political theater,” he said. “The practical reality of doing this is hard.” I also interviewed David Hallal, the CEO of a company, ElevateBio, that is locating a facility to manufacture cells in Pittsburgh’s new Hazelwood Green. The cells are genetically modified to potentially cure disease like multiple sclerosis and cancer. ElevateBio grows directly from a profound innovation: the sequencing of the human genome in 1990, which is spawning more treatments and thus, more companies, all the time. One of the most important questions is who will share in the economic benefits of the innovation as it unfolds through society. Do the companies stay here, and who reaps what share of the profits? Workers, executives, investors? This story and others on Times of E is made possible by a sponsorship from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is a private, nonpartisan foundation that provides access to opportunities that help people achieve financial stability, upward mobility, and economic prosperity – regardless of race, gender, or geography. The Kansas City, Mo.-based foundation uses its grantmaking, research, programs, and initiatives to support the start and growth of new businesses, a more prepared workforce, and stronger communities. For more information, visit www.kauffman.org and connect with www.twitter.com/kauffmanfdn and www.facebook.com/kauffmanfdn .