Does anyone care about manufacturing? In Factory Man, a new autobiography to be published in February 2009 by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME; www.sme.org), James E. Harbour says it doesn’t appear to be the financial community, the White House, or even Congress, but rather Japan, Korea and Europe.
Recognized as a leading automotive industry analyst and founder of The Harbour Report, a study of original equipment manufacturers’ (OEMs) manufacturing performance, Harbour has co-authored this factual, non-technical book with James V. Higgins, an award-winning automotive reporter, columnist and editor who covered the industry for most of his career at The Detroit News.
Factory Man clearly presents the insights and viewpoints of an automotive “insider” who became an “outsider” and one of the industry’s main critics. The book is a brutally honest assessment of what was wrong with U.S. automakers from the 1950s into the early 21st century. Harbour states his views very strongly and is a highly opinioned observer of the auto industry. His views are as relevant to the condition of the auto industry today, as they were in 1981 when he issued his first Harbour Report. The jury is still out on how many of this industry’s problems will be resolved.
Says Steve Miller, chairman, Delphi Corporation, “Jim Harbour offers a clear and compelling analysis of what has gone wrong with American auto manufacturing, and how it can be put right. The frequent human interest anecdotes make it an absorbing non-technical read.”
Harbour’s work experiences while at Ford Motor Company and at the Chrysler Corporation, mainly in manufacturing, takes readers on a personal trip. The reader is allowed to see how Harbour’s discovery and evaluation of the Toyota Production System – documented in his Harbour Report – gave impetus to his efforts in pushing Chrysler and the other “Big Three” American auto companies to change their production systems to become more competitive with Japanese car companies.
Says Harbour, “It’s tragic, this situation, in a large part because of the mismanagement of the U.S. economy by Congress and the White House. Just think: in time, the North American auto market will recover and even resume growth. But, because of the low priority given to American factory people by their government, the main beneficiaries will be foreign-owned companies.”
According to Harbour, it’s not hard to believe that Detroit's "Big Three" automakers could disappear in total leaving the North American market to the Japanese, Korean, European, and potentially the Chinese, where manufacturing is prized. Then all the billions in product development investment would be offshore and the profits would flow to Japan, Korea and Europe.
Detroit's "Big Three" auto management has made many bad strategic decisions and a number of good decisions. The quality of current products is equal to or better than the foreign competition and productivity improvement is over 50 percent improved since 1980.
The Detroit "Big Three's" problems are not all caused in Detroit by automotive management. Washington is a major cause:
- The 1970s energy policy set new fuel economy standards to reduce our reliance on foreign oil. The facts are, we are more dependent on foreign oil today and the huge price spikes to $147.00 a barrel accelerated the crisis.
- The current credit crisis was not created in Detroit but on Wall Street and in Washington.
- We are the only industrial country without a focus on manufacturing. After World War II, we forced the Japanese and Europeans to develop a manufacturing strategy that would be the foundation of their economies and the U.S. did nothing.
To purchase a copy of Factory Man, available February 2009, visit www.sme.org/factoryman. List price is $30; SME members pay $26; order code BK09PUB2. Orders also may be placed by calling 800-733-4763 313-425-3000
About the authors:
James E. Harbour is a recognized automotive industry analyst and founder of Harbour and Associates. The annual Harbour Report is the automotive industry’s bible of manufacturing labor efficiency and has driven massive improvements in manufacturing performance for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).
James V. Higgins covered the worldwide automotive industry for more than 25 years as a reporter, columnist and editor, primarily for The Detroit News. Higgins left The News in May 2006 and has since followed automotive topics as a freelance writer.
About SME:
The Society of Manufacturing Engineers is the world’s leading professional society supporting manufacturing education. Through its member programs, publications, expositions and professional development resources, SME promotes an increased awareness of manufacturing engineering and helps keep manufacturing professionals up to date on leading trends and technologies. Headquartered in Michigan, SME influences more than half a million manufacturing practitioners and executives annually. The society has members in more than 70 countries and is supported by a network of hundreds of technical communities and chapters worldwide.
