So much for idealism

Last year about this time I started hunting around for companies that make injection molds (for those who don't know, an "injection mold" is something used to make plastic parts in high quantities).  One local company was particularly hospitable.  They invited me to their factory, showed me around the manufacturing floor, and introduced me to their lead engineer - all the while emphasizing the benefits of making local contracts instead of foreign ones.  "Face-to-face contact, better service, faster lead-times, security (no-one will steal your design here), safety, and perhaps above all, PATRIOTISM."

I found the same general message on their web-site, although it was much more direct.  They even had a page devoted specifically to documenting all the cases when Chinese manufacturing had gone bad - poisonous plastics on sandals, toxins in baby food, stolen designs and molds.  You name a China-oriented scandal, and they dutifully reported it.  I assumed that they were fighting to keep their business running in the face of cheap competition overseas.

Just last week (a year after my first contact with them) I called on them again to get a quote on a new design.  The picture this time was completely different.  There was no offer for a site visit, no communication with engineering staff, no aggressive self-promotion.  I specifically asked if I could talk to an engineer, but they reported that they no longer did mold design.  They outsource all their design work to - get this - China!  I guess their struggle to justify higher costs in the name of locality and patriotism failed.

I guess sometimes you just can't fight the tides of world-wide economic change.  You embrace them or you die.