Microsoft “Distinguished Engineer” Has Venture to Re-invent American Manufacturing

Taking old equipment that he purchased and saved when key manufacturing operations moved out of state, Microsoft Research engineer Jim Kajiya is building a machine shop he hopes will help rebuild American manufacturing. Read this great story by Rami Grunbaum, deputy editor of the Seattle Times business section here.

Kajiya believes that his old machines, when updated with new electronics and information technology, can be used to build complex, high precision components.

Efforts like Kajiya’s could truly lead to a renaissance in manufacturing. America lost its manufacturing edge first to Japan and later to China in large part because of high labor costs and lower quality. We’ve learned to manufacture quality products using total quality control practices modeled after efforts by Toyota and others. Labor costs have remained a challenge.

But as manufacturing becomes more automated, the cost of labor in each product shrinks. And as more machines are controlled by sophisticated software, that plays to the strengths of the United States. As new machinery makes it easier to manufacture, a greater proportiion of the value is in the design, another strength of the United States. The ideal situation is to have all three elements in one place: IT, design and manufacturing. This allows inventors to design and implement products and continue adding features and upgrading the products on a continuous basis without having to travel back and forth to China.

Manufacturing, more than other sectors, requires an infrastructure. To justify manufacturing in a region you need to have all the pieces of the puzzle. Fortunately, Washington state still has a viable infrastructure. But it’s under pressure as many companies find it easier to set up new manufacturing operations in china where components are often cheaper and easier to get.

But more and more entrepreneurs realize that if they move manufacturing to China they risk losing their intellectual property as China pressures them to share technology. Attending the day-long Zino event last week, I was pleased to discover that at least three new companies presenting their business plans before the angel group, had plans to manufacture locally.

A revitalized manufacturing sector is crucial to maintain and create a diversity of jobs in our region. It’s great to have lots of high tech jobs, but not all our kids necessarily want to go into high tech.

One area that has a strong manufacturing sector is the Tri-Cities region. The region will be holding a large manufacturing trade show on Thursday called Gesa Smartmap Expo that will bring manufacturers from across the Northwest. Our own magazine launched the first Washington Business Awards this year to recognize companies pushing the envelope in manufacturing. We believe the resurgence in manufacturing is already happening and is critical to reviving our state’s economy. Effort’s like Kajiya’s, however, could play a critical role in taking it to the next level.