By Kym Conis, managing director, AMBA

Earlier this year, four American Mold Builders Association (AMBA) member CEOs had the opportunity to meet directly with representatives from the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR). Their purpose was straightforward: to help government officials better understand the realities facing America’s mold builders and the impact of international trade policies.

Following those meetings, each participant was asked to reflect on the experience – considering what surprised them, whether they felt their concerns were heard and whether these conversations truly mattered. The expectation was that the discussions would center on tariffs, trade agreements and policy mechanics. What emerged instead was something much more important. Each participant, independent of the others interviewed, arrived at essentially the same conclusion: Leaders of the US moldmaking industry cannot assume policymakers fully understand their challenges.

Competing Globally
Some participants were surprised by how little government officials knew about the day-to-day realities of competing in today’s global marketplace. Others observed that while the USTR team demonstrated a solid understanding of many trade issues, important gaps remained in areas such as transshipment, regional trade dynamics and the unique economics of the mold building industry. Yet every participant walked away encouraged.

The most important takeaway was summarized in one simple statement: “They don’t know unless we tell them!”

For years, many in the industry have assumed that government officials recognize the realities of competing against foreign manufacturers operating under entirely different economic systems, including the effects of government subsidies, intellectual property theft, tariff circumvention, workforce shortages, healthcare costs and the investment required to remain globally competitive. The truth is that officials only know what they are told. And if mold builders are not actively sharing their experiences, someone else is telling the story instead.

A plastics processor president recently shared that the overseas tooling supplier supporting one of his company’s operations actively is exploring plans to establish a mold repair shop in Kentucky. During AMBA’s annual conference, one member company owner reported being contacted by his local economic development organization, which asked whether he would host a visiting delegation of foreign mold builders touring US facilities. When that story was shared with one of AMBA’s supplier partners, it turned out similar visits are taking place in communities across
the country.

Regardless of how one views these activities – whether as foreign investment, economic development or international business expansion – they underscore an undeniable reality: others actively are building relationships, educating decision-makers and telling their side of the story. The obvious question becomes: “Who is telling ours?”

Diversified Business Experiences
The conversations with USTR also reinforced another important lesson, namely that there is no single story that represents the American mold building industry.One participant noted that while much of today’s trade discussion centers on China, his company’s greatest competitive challenge is coming from India. Serving the medical market, he described competing against companies capable of assigning 10 highly qualified engineers to projects for what many US mold builders can afford to pay one. Add healthcare costs, labor expenses, compliance costs and the overall price of operating in the US, and the competitive landscape becomes more uneven.

His observation was both thoughtful and important, cautioning against viewing the industry’s challenges through a single lens. The realities facing a medical mold builder may differ significantly from those serving automotive, consumer products, packaging, aerospace or other markets. Effective trade policy requires understanding those differences.

Perhaps the most insightful observation of the entire discussion was this: “Four companies cannot represent the experiences of an entire industry.”

The American mold building industry is incredibly diverse. Companies vary by size, geography, market focus, technology, customer base and competitive pressures. Some are battling subsidized overseas competitors. Others struggle with engineering shortages, currency differences, healthcare costs, workforce development or the growing sophistication of competitors in emerging global markets.

No single company can tell that complete story, which is precisely why AMBA exists. Too often, advocacy is viewed as something that happens only in Washington, D.C., by lobbyists or elected officials. The most effective advocacy begins when manufacturers share their firsthand experiences with policymakers. No economist, consultant or attorney can replace the perspective of a mold builder explaining what it means to quote against a subsidized competitor, lose business because of unfair trade practices or invest millions of dollars to remain competitive while operating under a very different cost structure than competitors overseas.

Members also underscored that advocacy is about much more than tariffs. American mold builders create far more than molds. Every mold built in the United States enables downstream manufacturing. It supports production in the automotive, medical, consumer products, appliance, aerospace, packaging, defense industries and more. It protects intellectual property and strengthens domestic supply chains. It develops highly skilled careers, and it contributes to the nation’s manufacturing capabilities and, in many respects, to national security.

Speaking for the Industry
One participant also emphasized that advocacy is most effective when it represents a unified voice. Individual companies naturally will have different experiences and priorities, but AMBA’s responsibility is to identify the issues that matter most to the membership and communicate those priorities consistently, professionally and credibly.

That is one of the greatest strengths of a trade association: It does not speak for one company; it speaks for an industry.These conversations connect directly to AMBA’s future direction. During recent strategic planning discussions, AMBA’s board spent considerable time discussing the goal of becoming a more trusted, respected and influential voice for the American mold building industry. The meetings with USTR demonstrated exactly what that means in practice.

Being influential is not measured by the number of meetings attended. It is measured by whether policymakers better understand the industry because of AMBA’s communications and connections.

It is measured by whether OEMs begin to recognize the value of engaging US mold builders earlier in the product development process, and by whether their sourcing professionals understand the true total cost of ownership, not simply the quoted purchase price. It is measured by whether plastics processors begin to appreciate the
strategic value of maintaining a strong domestic mold building industry.

Ultimately, it is measured by whether members become more competitive because AMBA helped shape the conversation.

One participant noted that taking part in the USTR meeting only made him want more conversations like it, a sentiment worth building on. Influence is never vacant. If the industry chooses not to engage, others will gladly define it, its challenges and its future. AMBA has both the opportunity and the responsibility to ensure that doesn’t happen.

The American mold building industry has an extraordinary story to tell: a story of innovation, precision, entrepreneurship, resilience and manufacturing excellence. But it also is a story far too complex to be told by only a handful of mold building leaders. The conversations with USTR were a reminder that government cannot develop effective policy from only a few voices. It requires hearing from an entire industry.

That is AMBA’s responsibility: to bring those voices together, to identify the issues that unite the industry and to recognize the challenges that make its members different, while also ensuring the people shaping America’s trade policies understand the realities facing the men and women who build the tools that make American manufacturing possible.

If this resonates, members are encouraged to share with AMBA (info@amba.org) what they are seeing. When a foreign competitor establishes a presence in their community, when a customer sources overseas on price alone or when a policy change lands on a shop floor, the AMBA office needs to hear about it. Those specifics are what advocacy partners carry into meetings in Washington. Generalities do not move policy; experience does.

Members should invite representatives to tour their facilities because policymakers who walk the floor and meet apprentices do not forget what they saw. When these events happen, notify AMBA at info@amba.org. If the opportunity comes to join AMBA in Washington, members should take it. Every member who has sat across the table from a decision-maker comes back saying the same thing the USTR participants said: “I want to do it again.” It is every leader’s responsibility in America to start it!

Kym Conis is the managing director of the American Mold Builders Association. She can be reached at kconis@amba.org.