Comment on Inside China's Mini PC Production: How Tiny Computers Are Made

fubarx@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

• irmadlad@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

  The one guy hand-soldering and fumes with no PPE or vent 😱

  I can’t see the video but I can just imagine. I’ve had first hand experience with Chinese manufacturing. I used to have the patent on a tool I created for small gas engines. After soliciting US manufacturers for pricing, it was quite evident, even on my small scale, why manufacturing has gone overseas. So we hit upon a guy in China to do a run, I went to observe the process. I’ll have to say, it was not what I had imagined. At one point, the ‘guide’ took us around to vats where they ‘washed’ off the product in some very caustic chemicals that would physically burn my nose when I inhaled. I’m not sure what the chemicals were, but it would eat all the grunge and any reminent slag off. We come around the corner, and there is this dude, standing in the vat of unknown chemicals, fishing around with his arm up to his shoulder in this muck, trying to unclog the drain, so they could proceed to the next step. I didn’t say anything but I remember thinking, for the sake of future generations, I hope that poor guy in the vat doesn’t replicate. That would be a genetic disaster.

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  • RubberElectrons@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    I’m going to keep manufacture local to the west coast, but yeah, price deltas are almost extreme in comparison.

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    • irmadlad@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      It was a frustrating experience. On the one hand, I really really really wanted the tool manufactured in the US. However, if I went the US route, I would have never sold one piece because it was just too expensive. It wasn’t an easy decision to go to China. After doing a couple runs, I had recouped my investment plus a little pocket change to put some 'taters on the table. I learned a lot on the way tho. You hear people say, ‘You outta patent that’, but the process is not that easy. At any rate, at least I can say ‘Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. No better or worse for the exercise.’

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