Strategic Impacts of Advanced Manufacturing Technology on American Textile Industry

Abstract

This article describes how U.S. manufacturing was stricken when companies embraced outsourcing beginning in the 1990s as a strategy for taking advantage of lower labor costs in developing countries. The U.S. textile and apparel industries lost 76.5% of its workforce, or 1.2 million jobs, between 1990 and 2012. The catalyst which has renewed the interest in manufacturing textiles and apparel in the United States is the narrowing gap between the U.S. and Asian labor costs. The sector changed in response to technology and the global market, and both the number and type of employees demanded turned as well. The advanced technology currently drives the domestic textile industry. Despite a positive outlook on growth, it is unlikely that textile manufacturing will create the large number of jobs that it did in the past. Furthermore, it is only viable because of the technological improvements to its factories. The current production is designed to employ fewer workers in order be more productive and less dependent on labor costs. Nevertheless, the high demand for specialized and unique textiles in the U.S. and Europe will likely continue to drive improved manufacturing technology and performance. China's transition from a manufacturing economy to a service economy will increase its manufacturing operational costs, while probably growing demand for the sorts of specialized textiles on which American textile manufacturers tend to focus. If such manufacturers can increase their market shares in China and other Asian countries, while maintaining such markets in the U.S. and Europe, the American textile manufacturing industry will likely grow at a moderately high rate.