Milford chronicle., 1927-02-25
OBTAINING MANUFACTURING PLANTS

cannot, however, change the geo.
graphical location of its community,
nor change the economic forces
which are at work in the develop
ment of this country. Let us take
one or two examples.
The Goodyear Tire and Rubber
Company OfAkron located a large
plant in Los Angeles. Why? Certain
ly not because of the superior sales
manship of the Los Angeles Cham
ber of Commerce as against the
craftsmanship of the Seattle Cham
Der, the New Orleans Chamber, the
Kansas City, Mo-, Chamber, and
others. They located this plant in
Los Angeles because of the advan-
tages of this location to them in in
creasing their production and their
profits. They knew from a study OF
their markets that Los Angeles was
the center of a large market for
their cord tires. In addition, Los
Angeles was near a supply of raw
material, cotton. 1t was also port
of entry which made it accessible to
another raw material,-rubber. AL
so as a port, Los Angeles made it
possible for a tire plant located
there to ship tires by water to other
markets. cheap transportation
facility. These and other factors
were what determined the location
of this Goodyear Tire and Rubber
Plant in Los Angeles. The role of
the Los Angeles Chamber in the
matter was to assist the company in
making the investigations which led
to its decision.
Not so long ago talked with the
engineer who had charge of finding
a location for a large publishing
company of Chicago. This company
wanted to move out of Chicago be-
cause it was not satisfied with the
Chicago labor market. 1t knew def
nitely just what it wanted. 1t wanted
a port on the Great Lakes so that
it could be sure of getting its pa
per supply by boat. In addition, 1t
wanted a city which either itself or
from nearby communities could sup
ply it with a certain type of skilled
labor. 1t wanted q city which could
meet in addition to these two re-
uuirements certain other require
ments with reference to freight
rates. What was the function of the
chambers of commerce in the cities
investigated? 1t was to supply this
engineer with the facts he wanted,
which he would, of course, check.
They could not make him locate the
plant in their community by any
kind of high pressure salesmanship,
although a number of chambers OF
commerce attempted this, futilely.
The community which could supply
the requirements got the plant.
At this point someone will arise
and call my attention to the fact
that a certain community got a GER
tain shoe factory because it raised
a bonus to build factory or pur-
chase a sit or something else for
this new industry. 1 admit it. My
answer is that either one or two
things will happen in this case.
First, the shoe factory in question
allowed the offering of a bonus to
influence its business judgment to
the extent that it placed its factory
in an uneconomical location. In that
case it will sooner or later fail, as
result of competition particularly
in times of depression or business
stress), and all three,-industry,
bonus giving, and community, will
suffer. Second, the shoe factory in
question made a sound decision, in
spite of the bonus, in locating its
factory in this particular cOmmun-
ity. In that case the bonus need not
have been given because either this
particular shoe factory or some
other would have located in this
community, because of the econo-
mics of its location for the manu-
facture of this particular product.
That also is the answer to the
bonus matter. 1t is an artificial
stimulus. 1t interferes with the 10
eating of industries in communities
in which they can prosper, that is, it |
in. n.erferes with the policy, which |
should be both the policy of the in
dustry and the policy of the cham
ber, of locating factories on the bas- |
is of the superior economies of the |
location selected.
The key, therefore, to any pro
gram for the location of new indus
tries is the industrial survey.
the survey the chamber of
finds out what industries
may profitably be located in the |
Through the survey it
checks the wishes, hopes, and aspir-