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A Tiny Screw Shows Why iPhones Won't Be 'Assembled in U.S.A.'
In China, you will also find one of Apple's most important markets, and over the last month the risks that come with that dependence have become apparent. On Jan. 2, Apple said it would miss earnings expectations for the first time in 16 years, mostly because of slowing iPhone sales in China. On Tuesday, the company is expected to reveal more details about its financial results for the most recent quarter and its forecast for the coming year.
In 2012, Apple's chief executive, Timothy D. Cook, went on prime-time television to announce that Apple would make a Mac computer in the United States. It would be the first Apple product in years to be manufactured by American workers, and the top-of-the-line Mac Pro would come with an unusual inscription: "Assembled in USA."
But when Apple began making the $3,000 computer in Austin, Tex., it struggled to find enough screws, according to three people who worked on the project and spoke on the condition of anonymity because of confidentiality agreements.
In China, Apple relied on factories that can produce vast quantities of custom screws on short notice. In Texas, where they say everything is bigger, it turned out the screw suppliers were not.
Tests of new versions of the computer were hamstrung because a 20-employee machine shop that Apple's manufacturing contractor was relying on could produce at most 1,000 screws a day.
The company could face more financial pressure if the Trump administration places tariffs on phones made in China — something the president has threatened to do.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by JoeMerchant on Tuesday January 29 2019, @09:31PM
0.1" of extra thickness - what are you thinking? With that kind of extra thickness, there's be noticeably more space for battery capacity, more durable case materials, all kinds of long-term consumer friendly things.
In our house, our 3rd Nexus 5x just went boot loopy, and our WiFi router is starting to flake out at about 5 years of age. It's called CONSUMER electronics for a reason - it's not made to last, it's made to crap out after a few years and force you to buy replacements. It seems like the 42" HD TV we bought in 2006 missed the memo, it's a trooper, but we've had a couple of smaller screens get bought, used, and die during those 13 years.
American automobiles of the late 1960s up through the early 1980s were so deeply entrenched in this business model they couldn't wean off of it before "foreign cars" (whatever that means in today's global supply chain) took over a huge piece of the domestic market share.
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