Manufacturing "dead" in the USA?

Unfortunately you are probably right. I hate to see us lose all of those skillls used in manufacturing. We have become "service" oriented.

What worries me more is that we might lose our innovativeness as a people partly because of that and partly because we are not as educated.

pete

Here's my two cents:

Although much of the large volume manufacturing is going overseas (China, Taiwan, etc.), small volume manufacturing and prototyping is oftern performed here in the US. A few companies still choose not to go overseas for manufacturing. Additionally, some of the communication barriers, inherent time delays, and security issues associated with overseas manufacturing are a problem for particular companies and products. Therefore, a certain non-trivial percentage of volume manufacturing will remain here in the US. I expect that manufacturing will continue here in the US, but with less capacity than in the past. Unfortunately, many companies will go out of business (many already have) because of the shift to overseas manufacturing.

I would not go so far as to say that manufacturing is dead in the US, but it is going through a major transformation/re-organization.

OK

Now my next question....

Given that manufacturing is going thru this "transformation".... how does a person like me who has always worked in manufacturing "prepare" for the future and what life will be like in the US say in 5 years?

You pose a great question that all of us should be actively considering.

Unfortunately, I don't know how to begin answering it without knowing alot about you as a specific person. I would need to know about your training, skills, experience, strengths, weaknesses, and personal goals.

In my case, I focus on development work, prototyping, and small scale production. I also make a point of being familiar with the various approaches available for large scale production, including overseas sourcing. Although I'm not particularly happy about overseas outsourcing, I try to remain as objective as possible and keep myself well informed so I can accurately portray the options for my clients. My approach has been to establish good working relationships with several companies that focus on manufacturing in China and Taiwan. By working with these companies, I have learned about both the benefits and disadvantages of going overseas.

In a nut shell, I work to keep myself well informed and focus myself on the types of work that appear to be persistent here in the US.

Get into maintenance and repair. It won't pay much but you always have a job fixing what is manufactured overseas. Fix ATMs or Elevators. Or Home repair and building. Buy and sell real estate etc.

pete

What abt moving to health care field?

radiology tech or something like that?