The Importance of Reshoring in the Wake of COVID Lockdowns
At Farrar Corporation, we are proud to say that all our products are made right here in the USA, and we’ve been doing it that way since our humble beginnings back in 1933. We now have almost 90 years of innovative American manufacturing behind us, and it has transformed us into a leading supplier of ductile iron castings and quality machined components. With two Kansas locations, we manufacture our ISO Certified products right in the heartland of America and provide our customers with a vertically integrated process that ensures complete control over production. Nothing is outsourced, and it’s all done domestically.
There are several key advantages to reshoring your manufactured parts, including supply chain security, faster delivery times, and increased customer responsiveness. We believe in the benefits of domestic sourcing, and it allows us to provide our customers with first-rate service.
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020, these advantages have only heightened. Port lockdowns, increased tariffs, and product shortages have all led more and more companies back to American manufacturing.
Though we’ve made it through the pandemic and have returned to normalcy here in the U.S., the recent lockdown of the Port of Shanghai is another reminder of endless supply chain disruptions occurring overseas.
Experts are warning of upcoming negative impacts, including comments from the JB Hunt transportation company in an article posted on April 24th in Quartz News.
“That certainly is going to make its way back into the US here this summer,” said Shelly Simpson, chief commercial officer of JB Hunt, “It just takes a little bit of disruption to really change the environment all over again.”
Reshoring provides a solution to these issues both in the short-term effects that will be prevalent the rest of the year, and the long-term security of your supply chain moving forward.
The “Reshoring Initiative” (reshorenow.org) – is a great resource for companies to compare the costs and benefits of reshoring and offshoring. The non-profit organization has been tracking data on the issue since they were founded in 2010 and have reported an increase in reshoring and foreign direct investment (FDI) job announcements each year. In their 2021 report posted on June 2nd, 2022, they saw a record 261,00 new manufacturing jobs move back into the United States, a sign that this trend will only continue to grow.
Harry Moser, founder of the Reshoring initiative outlined several motivations for reshoring in a July 2021 article published in casting source.
“Reshoring enables risk mitigation, resilience, agility, responsiveness, and faster time to market…” Moser said. “Through reshoring, you can meet consumer expectations and reconcile concerns about far-flung supply chains. At the same time, you can deliver quality products while eliminating the hidden costs and risks of offshore manufacturing.”
Just as reshoring efforts are rising, we too are growing here at Farrar.
Our most recent capital investment included a new FBO-IIIS 20 x 24 molding line from Roberts Sinto which will greatly increase the capacity of our foundry.
“As companies look to re-shore their ductile iron castings and machining, Farrar remains committed to our extraordinary customer service, exceptional quality, and a strong commitment to continued investments in resources,” said Farrar Corporation President/CEO Scott Case. “Our company allows you more flexibility over your order dates, increased ability to modify your order quantities, and tighter controls over your tooling and sourcing needs. Farrar is dedicated to ‘Made in America’ and looks forward to being your first contact to re-shore your ductile iron castings.”
