From global to local : the making of things and the end of globalization

Go east, young man? -- From putting out to getting out -- "Tea, Earl Grey, hot," or How we will make -- All hail our robot overlords -- Getting from A to NA in a hilly world -- Manufacturing the environment -- Looking through the other end of the telescope -- Mapping the fracture between the physical and the digital -- The changing politics of manufacturing -- Epilogue: The post world.;"This brilliantly original book dismantles the underlying assumptions that drive the decisions made by companies and governments the world over to show that our shared narrative of the global economy is deeply flawed and, if left unexamined, will lead corporations and countries astray, with dire consequences for us all. For the past fifty years or so, the global economy has been run on three big assumptions: that globalization will continue to spread ; that trade is the engine of growth and development ; and that economic power is moving from the West to the East. More recently, it has also been taken as a given that our interconnectedness--both physical and digital--will increase without limit. But what if all these assumptions are wrong? What if everything is about to change? Indeed, what if it has already started to change but we just haven't noticed? Increased automation, the advent of additive manufacturing (3D printing, for example), changes in shipping and environmental pressures, among other factors, are coming together to create a fast-changing global economic landscape in which the rules are being rewritten--at once a challenge and an opportunity for companies and countries"-- "This brilliantly original book dismantles the underlying assumptions that drive the decisions made by companies and governments throughout the world, to show that our shared narrative of the global economy is deeply flawed. If left unexamined, they will lead corporations and countries astray, with dire consequences for us all. For the past fifty years or so, the global economy has been run on three big assumptions: that globalization will continue to spread, that trade is the engine of growth and development, and that economic power is moving from the West to the East. More recently, it has also been taken as a given that our interconnectedness--both physical and digital--will increase without limit. But what if all these ideas are wrong? What if everything is about to change? Indeed, what if it has already started to change but we just haven't noticed? Increased automation, the advent of additive manufacturing (3D printing, for example), changes in shipping and environmental pressures, among other factors, are coming together to create a fast-changing global economic landscape in which the rules are being rewritten--at once a challenge and an opportunity for companies and countries alike."--Provided by publisher "This brilliantly original book dismantles the underlying assumptions that drive the decisions made by companies and governments throughout the world, to show that our shared narrative of the global economy is deeply flawed. If left unexamined, they will lead corporations and countries astray, with dire consequences for us all. For the past fifty years or so, the global economy has been run on three big assumptions: that globalization will continue to spread, that trade is the engine of growth and development, and that economic power is moving from the West to the East. More recently, it has also been taken as a given that our interconnectedness--both physical and digital--will increase without limit. But what if all these ideas are wrong? What if everything is about to change? Indeed, what if it has already started to change but we just haven't noticed? Increased automation, the advent of additive manufacturing (3D printing, for example), changes in shipping and environmental pressures, among other factors, are coming together to create a fast-changing global economic landscape in which the rules are being rewritten--at once a challenge and an opportunity for companies and countries alike."--Jacket This brilliantly original book dismantles the underlying assumptions that drive the decisions made by companies and governments throughout the world, to show that our shared narrative of the global economy is deeply flawed. If left unexamined, they will lead corporations and countries astray, with dire consequences for us all. For the past fifty years or so, the global economy has been run on three big assumptions: that globalization will continue to spread, that trade is the engine of growth and development, and that economic power is moving from the West to the East. More recently, it has also been taken as a given that our interconnectedness—both physical and digital—will increase without limit. But what if all these ideas are wrong? What if everything is about to change? What if it has already begun to change but we just haven't noticed? Increased automation, the advent of additive manufacturing (3D printing, for example), and changes in shipping and environmental pressures, among other factors, are coming together to create a fast-changing global economic landscape in which the rules are being rewritten—at once a challenge and an opportunity for companies and countries alike. For the past thirty years or more, the global economy has been run based on three big assumptions: globalisation will continue to increase; trade is the route to growth and development; and economic power is moving from West to East. But what if all these are wrong? This title shows how the world trading structure has already begun to shift, with irrevocable consequences for the global economy. Volatile oil prices, the pressures of sustainability and the availability of new technologies - such as 3D printing and automation - mean that companies, from General Electric to Apple, are beginning to move production away from distant countries and back home. If robots can make everything, why would companies use Chinese workers?