PALM BEACH, FL — Manufacturing leaders will have to reconsider their strategies abroad and pressure Washington for policy change at home if U.S. manufacturing is to rebound beyond what one economist called “the biggest fake [recovery] in economic history.”
Those were the key messages at the Managing Automation Media Manufacturing Leadership Summit, which kicked off here on Tuesday morning.
In a keynote address, John Engler, president of the National Association of Manufacturers, implored Washington to cut corporate tax rates and to make permanent the research and development tax credit that expired at the end of 2009. Failure to pass a long-term extension is threatening U.S. competitiveness, he said.
“By standing still, we’ve fallen further and further behind in some key areas,” said Engler, who is a former three-term governor of Michigan.