Thread: Australian Made vs Off-Shore.

I was under the impression the main damage was done after WWII, when international bankers / other countries / Power groups such as 'Bilderburgers' etc dictated that Oz would NOT be a manufacturing nation, b ut a primary produce and 'hole in the ground'.

Adherence to that would go a way to explaining why successive governments have wound down and discouraged 'Industry', in favour of importing cheep overseas made goods.

Remember when we used to make our own TYRES ? not only, but they were guaranteed for 40K. Both Uniroyal and "ESSO" came out of the same factory. Never a problem with roundness or balance, and made so well that even when "re-moulded' (Fancy re-treading) they were balanced and stayed together at over 160km/h for hours at a time. - Try that with some cheap chinese stuff !!!!

On our dining table tonight:

Salt grinder, 90 gram net. ( Substantial glass body, NON-refillable... well-known "Aussie" brand...been around for yonks. Very small printing in a small box

"Packed in ITALY from imported ingredients. Salt from AUSTRALIA"

So Sxxa buys sea salt in Australia, adds iodine, ships it to ITALY where it's put into those heavy glass NON-refillable grinders, then shipped back here. Why is it cheaper to ship it both ways AND have it packed in glass which would add to freight costs, than to do it all here?

Pepper Grinder:- 130gram nett, total weight less than half of the near-empty salt grinder.
Another Aussie - South Australian - company... Fair enough the peppercorns are grown (?) in Vietnam, but then shipped to South AFRICA to be processed and packed into a lightweight plastic but again, NON-refillable grinder.
Then shipped to Oz.

Please explain the logic and finances of both ?

Originally Posted by superquag

I was under the impression the main damage was done after WWII, when international bankers / other countries / Power groups such as 'Bilderburgers' etc dictated that Oz would NOT be a manufacturing nation, b ut a primary produce and 'hole in the ground'.

Adherence to that would go a way to explaining why successive governments have wound down and discouraged 'Industry', in favour of importing cheep overseas made goods.

Remember when we used to make our own TYRES ? not only, but they were guaranteed for 40K. Both Uniroyal and "ESSO" came out of the same factory. Never a problem with roundness or balance, and made so well that even when "re-moulded' (Fancy re-treading) they were balanced and stayed together at over 160km/h for hours at a time. - Try that with some cheap chinese stuff !!!!

Rubbish. Australian manufacturing was promoted by successive government from the end of WW2 for the next thirty years, changing only when improving communications and burgeoning overseas travel revealed to Australians just how much they were paying for the privilege of a manufacturing industry that was steadily moving backwards relative to the rest of the world.

Nobody 'dictated' that Australia should be a primary producer, but the reality of manufacturing for a tiny population spread all over the country meant that Australia was supported by primary production, at least from the 1850s (before that it was supported by British capital and British taxpayers). Most manufactured goods were imported, largely from Britain until WW1, the exceptions being mostly manufacturing set up to ensure skills for maintenance on , for example, railway locomotives, plus various things made specially for Australian conditions.

WW1 saw the start of serious manufacturing, mainly because of the shortage of shipping, and political pressure started after the war to keep restrictions on to protect manufacturing set up during the war, a good example being the motor industry.

WW2 saw Australia literally needing to manufacture almost everything needed - there was little alternative, and this meant a large manufacturing base at the end of the war. This benefited from progressively increasing protection as the relative costs of Australian manufacturing rose, and as manufacturing round the world grew to favour increasingly large scale production, not available here with our small markets.

Another factor has been Australia's unwillingness to invest in manufacturing, and demonising anyone who dares to actually make a profit from it.

The protection was obviously unsustainable by the 1970s, and the rolling back of it in a major way started with the Hawke government, and continued more or less to the present.

In supporting this rollback by electing governments who have continued it, Australians have shown that they are not in favour of paying a lot more for a limited choice, just to support a tiny proportion of the workforce, plus a largely overseas owned shareholding.

Through the years, there have been some highlights of Australian manufacturing. Perhaps one notable achievement is that for close to fifty years up to the early seventies, Australia produced the world's cheapest steel, thanks to some canny management and cheap feed materials. But this was a fairly isolated example, and came to an end thanks to the small Australian market coupled with the impossibility of export in the face of everyone protecting their steel industry meant that the new, larger facilities needed to compete with overseas producers were not viable.

On the other hand, Australians continue to show a strong consumer preference for Australian grown and processed food, and some of this for example baby formula and wines, have a good export market. But these are 'manufacturing' jobs that can be done efficiently on a relatively small scale.

ADR 26 (01/01/1972 Emission) was a standard unique to Australia, that was designed, amongst other things, to give Australian manufactured vehicles an advantage by way of cost, due to economy of numbers.

Originally Posted by Fatso

Never used to be , can remember back when i was a young bloke where we had a basic wage system and every body did ok houses were affordable , you could quit your job on a Friday & start a new job Monday no problem . Most if not everything we needed was made in Australia , can remember when the first Jap stuff arrived in Oz and the stink it coursed , not buying Jap Crap etc .

Trouble is every one wants everything now at Chinese prices even if they only last 3 months like a K Mart Toaster i purchased for $9 , unlike the Sunbeam Toaster that lasted me 21yrs made in Oz .

Ah well i will still try my best to avoid anything Chinese at a lesser price , not that it will make any difference but at least it will give me a warm feeling knowing that the Chinese wont get my $ .

unlike the Sunbeam Toaster that lasted me 21yrs made in Oz .

Yours as well eh? We eventually ditched ours after any spare parts became unavailable although the bloke in Adelaide claims he bought the remaining stock in Oz.

Of course spare parts being spare Parts, also eventually get used up so no more.


Labour costs today to have any repairs done would cost a motza so I guess we will ditch the WW/K Mart Target etc Toaster when it's time comes which should be anytime soon as it about 5 years old & cost next to ****all.

Originally Posted by JDNSW

Rubbish. Australian manufacturing was promoted by successive government from the end of WW2 for the next thirty years, changing only when improving communications and burgeoning overseas travel revealed to Australians just how much they were paying for the privilege of a manufacturing industry that was steadily moving backwards relative to the rest of the world.

Nobody 'dictated' that Australia should be a primary producer, but the reality of manufacturing for a tiny population spread all over the country meant that Australia was supported by primary production, at least from the 1850s (before that it was supported by British capital and British taxpayers). Most manufactured goods were imported, largely from Britain until WW1, the exceptions being mostly manufacturing set up to ensure skills for maintenance on , for example, railway locomotives, plus various things made specially for Australian conditions.

WW1 saw the start of serious manufacturing, mainly because of the shortage of shipping, and political pressure started after the war to keep restrictions on to protect manufacturing set up during the war, a good example being the motor industry.

WW2 saw Australia literally needing to manufacture almost everything needed - there was little alternative, and this meant a large manufacturing base at the end of the war. This benefited from progressively increasing protection as the relative costs of Australian manufacturing rose, and as manufacturing round the world grew to favour increasingly large scale production, not available here with our small markets.

Another factor has been Australia's unwillingness to invest in manufacturing, and demonising anyone who dares to actually make a profit from it.

The protection was obviously unsustainable by the 1970s, and the rolling back of it in a major way started with the Hawke government, and continued more or less to the present.

In supporting this rollback by electing governments who have continued it, Australians have shown that they are not in favour of paying a lot more for a limited choice, just to support a tiny proportion of the workforce, plus a largely overseas owned shareholding.

Through the years, there have been some highlights of Australian manufacturing. Perhaps one notable achievement is that for close to fifty years up to the early seventies, Australia produced the world's cheapest steel, thanks to some canny management and cheap feed materials. But this was a fairly isolated example, and came to an end thanks to the small Australian market coupled with the impossibility of export in the face of everyone protecting their steel industry meant that the new, larger facilities needed to compete with overseas producers were not viable.

On the other hand, Australians continue to show a strong consumer preference for Australian grown and processed food, and some of this for example baby formula and wines, have a good export market. But these are 'manufacturing' jobs that can be done efficiently on a relatively small scale.

Thanks John. So that is a No then?

Originally Posted by 4bee

Thanks John. So that is a No then?

If you refer to superquag's post that is the answer. In fact, the post WW2 period was when Australia was most protectionist in coddling manufacturing.

We were in K Mart yesterday which was advertising children's winter pyjamas from $3, with most in the $5-10 range. How is that possible? Someone, somewhere, is getting maybe 30 cents to actually make them, I assume, and we Aussies won't do it for that.