Managing Automation - November 2008 - (Page 18)

joshua greenbaum NOTES In this election year, with so much at stake for our nation and its economy, I think it’s appropriate to politicize this column with a baldly controversial statement: The manufacturing industry is ill-served by one of its primary industry trade groups, the National Association of Manufacturers, and it’s time for NAM to figure out how to objectively represent American manufacturing interests or get out of the way and let some other, less partisan group do so. The impetus for this comes from NAM’s insistence that manufacturing policy be tied to one political party: the GOP. NAM’s positions on a wide range of issues — taxation, energy, and plaintiff lawsuits, to name a few — are effectively taken straight from the Republican Party’s playlist, with little or no attempt to link these positions to the actual problems that beset American manufacturers. To be clear, I don’t propose that NAM favor the Democratic Party — or any party, for that matter. Indeed, making manufacturing a partisan issue is the sin I find unforgivable. NAM is a voice for a single political party from which, not surprisingly, the majority of NAM’s executives are drawn. When asked for comment, a NAM spokesperson said the organization is nonpartisan and policy positions are set by the board, not the executive team runing the organization. The problem can be seen in NAM’s positions on climate change and drilling for oil. NAM’s energy plank has a single overriding position: Cheap energy is good; expensive energy is bad. That works well until you actually look at the problem. For example, NAM fails to account for the fact that the cost of shipping a container from China to New York has recently trebled. Those costs, alongside rising inflation in offshore manufacturing centers, is quickly undermining the cost advantages that have 2008 No More Party Favors josh@eaconsult.com U.S. manufacturers need a trade group in Washington that will represent their interests rather than blindly following Republican Party planks. accrued to offshore manufacturing over the years. Add the problems of quality that have plagued offshore manufacturing in the past year (poisoned heparin, leaded children’s toys, among others), and all of a sudden offshoring looks a lot less interesting. Meanwhile, by following partisan positions, NAM fails to consider that higher energy prices, combined with other factors, may actually drive manufacturing back to the USA. Wouldn’t that be good for the home team, NAM? Apparently not: Carrying water for partisan policies is more important than looking at the complexities of the energy problem and trying to find a manufacturing-centric solution. Energy is only one example. The majority of NAM’s policies are rehashed partisan policy on issues such as healthcare and taxes, for which NAM offers simplistic and unsubstantiated positions that are simply not worthy of the goal of promoting the health of the entire manufacturing sector. What can manufacturers do about NAM? Plenty. There are other trade organizations to put time and energy into — for example, the Association for Manufacturing Excellence and the National Council for Advanced Manufacturing. The latter pointedly calls itself non-partisan. And one could try lobbying the lobbyists themselves. Maybe, with a push from manufacturers truly interested in non-partisan solutions, NAM may find it in its own interests to cross the aisle and work out a position that is more focused on manufacturing issues and not the simplistic policies of a single political party. Change is in the air this election year. Maybe NAM should try a little change, too. s Joshua Greenbaum is principal of Enterprise Applications Consulting, based in Berkeley, CA. maonline managingautomation.com For more of Joshua Greenbaum’s views, visit: u Software-as-a-Service Grows Up www.managingautomation .com/notes55 u Guarding Your Brand Online www.managingautomation .com/notes54 u Supply Chain Risk & Reward www.managingautomation .com/notes53 ma 18 November Photo: David Toerge http://www.managingautomation.com http://www.managingautomation.com/notes55 http://www.managingautomation.com/notes55 http://www.managingautomation.com/notes54 http://www.managingautomation.com/notes54 http://www.managingautomation.com/notes53 http://www.managingautomation.com/notes53

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Managing Automation - November 2008 Contents Take 1 At One-Year Mark, Wonderware President Focuses on Empowering Plant Operators Oracle Demos Fusio Apps, Reveals Delays Baan Founder Says BPM Will Replace ERP Emerson Talks Wireless at Annual User Group Event Merger Complete, Intercim Focuses on Collaboration Notes Cover Story: The New Supply Chain Reality Special Report: Keep Out Integration: The On-Demand Interchange Industries: Ending the Endless Waves of Paper Product Scan Advertiser Index Next

Managing Automation - November 2008

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