This article was contributed to Made in Washington by Dave Barton, Sales Manager at Aero-Plastics, Inc.
Here is a local business story with a “feel good” message and possibly a challenge to the Puget Sound business community.
Several years ago, local entrepreneur Curt Bingham purchased a Bellevue-based company, Garden Works. Garden Works had successfully been in business for over a dozen years, supplying garden centers, nurseries and gift shops with unique tools, gloves, plant supports and other accessories used by gardeners. Curt set out to grow his business by both adding quality products and improving upon his existing product line. Many of his products were being produced offshore. The quoted prices from China were very enticing; considerably lower than from manufacturing sources in the USA.
Being a businessman, college instructor, and working on his PhD in business as well, Bingham analyzed the total costs of his products, not just the quoted price. The analysis of his TuffTote, a molded polyethylene plastic multi-use container, was top priority as he was experiencing problems with quality and delivery from China. Among many “hidden” costs were the cost, in both money and time, of freight from Asia. After visiting factories in China and Mexico, Mr. Bingham moved his production molds to a molder in Mexico.
Though the initial results were improved, the quality and delivery began to slide. Curt was on a mission to add as much North American-made product as he could to his product line. He likes to think globally, but buy locally, so he contacted Aero-Plastics, Inc., a precision machining and injection molding company located in Renton, WA. He was doubtful that the dollars and cents of the local production would pencil out. After all, doesn’t everything big and plastic come from a factory outside the USA?
Aero-Plastics has been in business for over 50 years, serving primarily aerospace customers. How could they compete making a plastic gardening bucket?
Bingham realized he was paying a lot for the product after it left the factory. Freight was considerable. He had to re-count, inspect, handle and administer the paperwork of rejections and credits. He had no real legal protection when dealing with manufacturers outside the US, just the hope that the supplier would do the right thing. Worst of all, he had unhappy customers when quality was poor and delivery late. All of these issues cost money, even though they don’t appear on the invoice from the foreign manufacturer with the low price.
Through several meetings that included discussion of all aspects of producing and delivering the finished goods to the end customer (refining the manufacturing process, sourcing quality domestic raw materials, efficient lot sizes, shipping, warehousing, payment terms, etc.), Garden Works and Aero-Plastsics struck a deal.
Garden Works’ TuffTote containers now proudly sport a “MADE IN USA” sticker. The quality is flawless, and delivery 100% on time. Sales of the product have doubled and Curt Bingham’s headaches are gone; his attention can be focused elsewhere.
End of the story? Not really. On paper, both Garden Works and Aero-Plastics are working harder for a little less to the bottom line, but who isn’t in today’s economy? And when you consider the cost savings of smaller inventories, zero defects and NO customer complaints, the slightly lower margins more than offset the headaches of doing business out of the country. What is the real cost of replacing defective products? What is the additional shipping cost to replace these products? What is the cost of losing the faith and confidence of your customer? All of these are the hidden costs that make the decision to move production to the US very attractive. And look at the big picture benefit to our local economy and beyond. Making the products here allows the money to stay here in the Puget Sound area. Those dollars multiply as they move throughout the region. Each step of the way, from raw material supplier to the retail sale, the multiplier effect goes on and on! Not to mention the “feel good” factor of BUYING AMERICAN-MADE PRODUCTS!
This is just one company moving one product back to US manufacturing. Imagine what would happen if we could get just 10% back. It doesn’t have to be high technology or high-priced business. When you capture all of the true costs of manufacturing and getting your product to the consumer, US manufacturing is the way to go. We need to challenge our local companies to bring their manufacturing back home and reap the rewards of doing so.
For more information, contact:
Aero-Plastics, Inc.
Dave Barton, Sales Manager
425-226-3400
www.aero-plastics.com
Garden Works
Curt Bingham
888-660-8511
www.garden-works.net
