Is the Craftsman name just about done?

[hickory n Steel]

They had plenty of red Craftsman cases at my nearest lowes yesterday,  but none of the Ft Worth TX tools

[muddy]

I swear I didn't see anything like that. But then again chasing a 5 and 3 yr old around you end up missing things.

Sent from my Twisted Mind Of The Mudman

Get them looking for the tools! Say there's a bag of candy for the first one to find a red Craftsman case! 

  problem is theyll all end up in my cart!

[stokester]

For me, yes.  I have a cabinet full of the US-made sockets and wrenches but anything made overseas - no.

Interesting article in today's Wall Street Journal about the plant in Texas.  Seems there is more to making a quality tool than automating most of the process.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/craftsman-america-wrench-stanley-black-decker-reshoring-factory-1125792f?st=jfo4drwldqcgybc&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

[hickory n Steel]

For me, yes.  I have a cabinet full of the US-made sockets and wrenches but anything made overseas - no.

Interesting article in today's Wall Street Journal about the plant in Texas.  Seems there is more to making a quality tool than automating most of the process.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/craftsman-america-wrench-stanley-black-decker-reshoring-factory-1125792f?st=jfo4drwldqcgybc&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

From what I understand they were trying to implement the same economic manufacturing process ( a cold forging process I think) used in Taiwan,  but they didn't have enough understanding of the process to make it work.

[goodfellow]

Short video on why the Craftsman Texas production plant effort failed. You'd think that being a long time tool company, SBD would have these issues figured out. The failure suggests that by embracing long term outsourcing, the parent company can't organize efficiently enough to actually produce a product that at one time was one of their core domestic lines of business. Over the last 30 years Japanese and Taiwanese industries learned from US manufacturers and organized their quality manufacturing just as efficiently, while offering a lower price point.

[highland512]

Like I said earlier this entire thing smells of a tax code that sbd took advantage of and has now run out. You can’t tell me that sbd doesn’t have a engineer in Taiwan that couldn’t get on a plane and help solve a manufacturing problem in Tx.

[J.A.F.E.]

Like I said earlier this entire thing smells of a tax code that sbd took advantage of and has now run out. You can’t tell me that sbd doesn’t have a engineer in Taiwan that couldn’t get on a plane and help solve a manufacturing problem in Tx.

SBD probably doesn't need to go that far. At least part of the Proto line is made in Dallas, TX and Proto is under the Stanley empire.

The whole Stanley/Craftsman deal brings two words to mind - monkey and football.

[hickory n Steel]

Like I said earlier this entire thing smells of a tax code that sbd took advantage of and has now run out. You can’t tell me that sbd doesn’t have a engineer in Taiwan that couldn’t get on a plane and help solve a manufacturing problem in Tx.

SBD probably doesn't need to go that far. At least part of the Proto line is made in Dallas, TX and Proto is under the Stanley empire.

The whole Stanley/Craftsman deal brings two words to mind - monkey and football.

The problem is they wanted to basically set up a Taiwanese tool factory here in the US, and well the PROTO factory doesn't use those cost effective cold forging processes ive heard about that play a big part in the low price for the Taiwanese tools.

I call BS that they just couldn't figure out the processes though.
Aside from the obvious of bringing in some Taiwanese engineers,  they could have started with screwdrivers or something easy to turn a profit while getting the ratchets and wrenches figured out.
The PROTO factory can't exactly handle big box volume or prices, but they could have reintroduced the Craftsman professional line of rebranded PROTO tools with a limited selection at ACE hardware or something.
I don't think Lowes would be the place to sell them, but I think they would sell.

[Barks]

From the WSJ article it appears they tried to eat the elephant whole rather than a bite at a time.  Not an iterative improvement of process but a wholesale implementation.  That, accompanied by constant management changes, a lack of focus as to the direction of the company and changing financial markets and supply chain, the project was doomed.  Probably a case study in "how not to do it".