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Oracle 'Onshores' Manufacturing Jobs To Oregon

Oracle

Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber (Wikipedia)

Following Apple’s recent move to begin making some Macs in the U.S., Oracle will begin manufacturing its high-end servers and storage systems at one of the five facilities it operates in Oregon.

Noting that Oracle is eager to expand its manufacturing presence in Oregon, Oracle vice president Luke Kowalski said in a statement, “By moving production of our industry-leading systems and servers from Mexico to Oracle’s Hillsboro facility we’ll be able to meet customer demand while bringing new technology jobs to the state of Oregon.”

Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber said the move of high-tech production from Mexico to Oracle's Hillsboro facility is evidence of an "onshoring" trend.

“I want to recognize Oracle’s decision to expand in the United States rather than overseas, just the latest example of an industry leader choosing to ‘onshore’ in our state,” said Governor Kitzhaber.

“This is further proof of Oregon’s competitiveness in the global economy and a recognition that Oregon workers are second to none in their skills and training.”

Late last year, Apple said it would begin manufacturing some of its Mac computers in the United States.  A ZDNet story about that move offered this perspective from Apple CEO Tim Cook:

"I don't think we have a responsibility to create a certain kind of job," Cook said. "But I think we do have a responsibility to create jobs."

"When you back up and look at Apple's effect on job creation in the United States, we estimate that we've created more than 600,000 jobs now," he added.

The onshoring trend cited by Governor Kitzhaber could also eventually include contract-manufacuting giant Flextronics. In a column written shortly after the Apple announcement, ZDNet editor-in-chief Larry Dignan explored the possibility that rising costs in emerging regions could once again make the U.S. a viable alternative for manufacturing jobs.

Dignan cited the following comments made by Flextronics CEO Mike McNamara during a conference call:

As our costs become pressured, it makes other choices more interesting. What that is going to do is probably push more work into Mexico. And, over time, as those costs continue to go up, you'll probably see more things get pushed back in the U.S.

As you see things that get pushed back into the U.S., a la the Apple comment -- as you see things get pushed back into the U.S., it is more than just having the right cost structure. You also have to design for more automation and more different kinds of productivity. So, it is an evolution; it is not just flipping a switch. You actually have to spend a lot of work in the design, all the way through to the manufacturing process, knowing where you are going to manufacture.

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