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🚨In the News

Apple's $100B "manufacturing" announcement got me thinking...

Remember Tim Cook's February promise of $500B for "US facilities"? Turned out to be R&D centers and AI infrastructure. Not a single production line.

This week's $100B feels different… actual iPhone glass production in Kentucky. Real manufacturing jobs.

But here's the thing that keeps me up at night: glass is maybe 5% of the supply chain complexity. The semiconductors that make your phone think? The rare earth magnets that make it vibrate? The precision components that actually determine if your product ships on time?

Still sitting in Asia. And likely staying there for the next decade.

Look, I'm not throwing shade at Apple. Moving glass production to Kentucky is genuinely good news. It's jobs, it's progress, it's a start.

But let's be honest about what reshoring actually looks like vs. what the press releases say. Decades of specialized manufacturing infrastructure doesn't relocate because of an announcement and a ribbon cutting.

The real work happens in places like the plants I visit - where engineers are quietly figuring out how to make things work with what they've got, building resilience one process improvement at a time.

That's the reshoring story that doesn't get headlines. But it's the one that actually matters.

🏭 Manufacturing Minute

In the age of instantaneous payment, it’s crazy that we in manufacturing are still doing Net 90 (or more!).

Every other industry figured this out.

Manufacturing is still stuck in 1985.

Fortune 500 companies demand 90-120 day payment terms while expecting the smaller vendors to pay suppliers in 30. That’s essentially providing free financing to companies with billion-dollar credit lines.

Your CNC machine doesn't run on IOUs. But somehow we've accepted that making stuff = being a free bank for everyone else.

Here’s how it should work:

Net 30 Should Be Standard - Not negotiable. You're not Amazon warehousing inventory for months. You're transforming raw materials into something valuable. Payment should follow delivery, period.

Progress Payments for Big Jobs - 30% down, 40% at milestone, 30% on delivery. Construction figured this out decades ago. Why are we different?

The 2% Early Payment Discount - This isn't charity. It's math. 2% for paying in 10 days equals 36% annual return. Most companies would jump at that if their CFO actually ran the numbers.

Late Fees That Matter - 1.5% monthly. Compound it. Make it hurt more than their cost of capital.

Here's the thing that drives me nuts: we've convinced ourselves that "customer service" means becoming their unpaid financing department.

Real customer service is delivering quality parts on time at fair prices. Full stop.

Stop apologizing for wanting to get paid for the value you create.

What would change in your business if everyone paid in 30 days? Seriously - think about it.

P.S., Whether you're trying to make sense of Industry 4.0, struggling with legacy systems, or just need a sounding board from someone who's navigated similar waters, let's talk. Book Your 30-Minute Strategy Call →

P.P.S., if you are a nerd (like me), the next installment of my Manufacturing-themed D&D comic is out! See it here: