The Clothing Industry Where did the clothing industry

The Clothing Industry • Where did the clothing industry first develop? • What were the important new clothing-producing countries in the early 21 st-century? • What is the hourly wage for apparel workers in the U. S. at the time the article was published? How does it compare with other areas? • How does high-end apparel production differ from cheap leisure wear?

Industrialization “Why Do Industries Have Different Distributions? ”

It’s All About THE MONEY! • Industry seeks to maximize profits by minimizing production cost • Geographers try to explain why one location may provide more profit than another • Two geographical costs: – Situation: transporting materials – Site: land, labor, and

Situation Factors • Definition – transporting materials to and from the factory • Objective – minimize the costs • For some companies, this is the most important factor in choosing a location

If you were building a car manufacturing plant in the U. S. , where would you locate it?

Proximity to Inputs • Every industry needs either resources from the physical environment or parts/materials made by another company • Weight of the material is a factor for choosing location

Example: Copper Industry • • • First Step: Mining the copper ore Bulk-reducing Industry Concentration mills must be near mines Purified copper is then treated at refineries Source of energy

Example 2: Steel Industry • Also a bulk-reducing industry • Choose location to minimize the cost of transporting inputs • Steel is an alloy of iron that is produced by removing impurities in iron

Origin of Steel Industry • Productions was small until the Industrial Revolution • The constant heating and cooling of steel required strength, skill and a lot of time • The Watt Steam Engine

More advances in the steel industry • Henry Cort – Puddling – reheating iron until pasty, then stirring it with iron rods until impurities are burned off – Rolling – passing iron between rollers to remove remaining scum • Abraham Darby – produced high quality iron smelted with purified carbon made from coal, known as coke – Result – the iron industry needed to be near coalfields

U. S. Steel Industry • In the mid 19 th Century – the U. S. steel industry was concentrated around Pittsburgh • In the first half of the 20 th Century – steel mills were built near the coast – Baltimore, L. A. , Trenton

Changing U. S. Steel Industry • Recently, many steel plants have closed • Survivors – southern Lake Michigan, East Coast • Successful steel mills are located close to markets • Mini-mills

Proximity to Markets • Transporting goods to consumers is an important locational factor for three industries: 1. Bulk-gaining 2. Singe market 3. Perishable

Bulk Gaining Industries • Gain weight during production • Example: soft drink bottling • Coca-Cola has bottling plants all over

Fabricated Metals and Machinery • This is a prominent example of a bulk gaining industry • A fabricated-metals factory brings together parts to make a more complex product • Examples: TVs, refrigerators, air conditioners, and cars

Location of Car Manufacturing • Historically – near large markets • Recently – assembly plants focus on producing a single model rather than locating near all large markets

The Ford Plant in ATL (#6) has closed

Single Market Manufacturers • Products are sold primarily in one location, so they cluster near the market • Example: the manufacturers of automobile parts only sell to a couple of customers (GM, Toyota) • Parts makers ship their products directly to assembly plants • “auto alley” Average Percentage of State GDP in Automotive Manufacturing, 1998 to 2008

Perishable Products • Products must be delivered to consumers ASAP! • Milkshed • Technology’s impact?

Ship, Rail, Truck, or Air • Trucks – used for short distance • Trains – longer distances • Water – if available, is attractive for long distances • Air – the most expensive, but more firms are using the air for speedy delivery

Break-of-Bulk Points • Cost rises each time inputs are transferred from one mode to another • Sometimes – the cost for one mode is lower for inputs and expensive for products, so companies locate at a “breakof-bulk” point where transfer among transportation modes is possible – Seaport, airport St. Louis is a break of bulk point and you can see the multiple transportation modes intersect here

Site Factors • Definition = the unique characteristics of a location • Land, labor, and capital are three traditional production factors that vary among locations • The most important site factor on a global scale = labor • Minimizing labor cost in VERY important for some industries

Labor • Labor-intensive industry – one in which labor is a high percentage of expense • Some need highly skilled, expensive labor • Labor intensive is not the same is “high-wage” • Textile and clothing industries – require less skilled, low cost workers – 3 steps: spinning, weaving, and cutting/sewing – All are labor intensive, but not equally so resulting in global distributions that are not identical

Textile and Apparel Spinning • Because it is labor intensive, it is located in low-wage countries (LDCs) • LDCs account for ¾ of the world’s spinning production • Located where cotton is grown • The U. S. is the only MDC that is a major thread producer • Synthetic fibers – ½ is grown in LDCs

Textile and Apparel Weaving • Labor is even more intensive • Especially highly concentrated in lowwage countries: 86% of the world’s woven cotton factory is produced in PINGs • China accounts for ½ of production • India accounts for ¼ of production

Textile and Apparel Assembly • Textiles are assembled into four main types of products 1. 2. 3. 4. • Most of the 80 billion articles or clothing sold worldwide is made in Asia – – – • Garments Carpets Home products Industrial uses 3/4 of shirts ½ of dresses and suits Most of the underwear and lingerie Europeans and North Americans produce woolens

Land • Most efficient – one story building = more land • Land is cheaper in suburban or rural areas than in the city • Industries are attracted to energy sources, low electrical rates, and amenities at the site

Capital • Manufacturers typically borrow funds to establish new factories or expand existing ones • Silicon Valley – capital • Financial incentives • The ability to borrow money in LDCs?