Xiamen - Awesome Field Trip - Knight Saddlery

We asked Hannah what she wanted for her birthday and of course she mentioned horseback riding. While she did not get to do that, she also asked to visit a factory that manufactures horse-related equipment. Little did we know that Ms. Shirley Lee, a friend who grew up in Singapore and now lives and works in Xiamen, is a director at one of two such factories in China and she invited us to visit it on Hannah's birthday. Hannah flipped when she heard where we were going! She benefited a great deal from the experience and learned a bit more about riding - the following shows how a Chinese company manufactures goods and gadgets that riders need and want!

Hear from Hannah what the company makes.....

Imagine, there are hundreds of thousand of manufacturing facilities/factories in China - how can we, the US, compete with the Chinese??? We won't....

The nature of the work is mundane and repetative. Few in developed countries want to do this, or at least that is what the media tells us. Globalization has resulted in jobs being outsourced overseas. There is nothing wrong with putting in an honest day's work - in fact God ordained work and we should be as productive as we can, using the talents He gave us.

Every conceivable gadget a horse lover would want and need....

Christmas came early - Hannah in 'hog-heaven'....

Office Manager originally from Malaysia - she knows everything about the products....

The design team routinely uses this horse to test prototypes before mass producing them...

A horse blanket about to be completed.

This German-made machine receives attention from a technician.

Make sure you double-check your work before turning on the switch.

This shop foreman gave Hannah and David several samples - of course they were thrilled.

There are millions of him willing to work very hard - 7 days a work - 10-12 hours per shift.

Him too....

Thank you Shirley, for arranging this wonderful field trip....

Electric stamp - Made in China. Chinese goods are still often under par, but over time, they will continue to improve - what happened to the Japanese and South Koreans testifies to that - and the US must resurrect and expand its manufacturing base, not dismantle it by shipping the capability overseas - this is unwise.

And the Oscar goes to......

Finished products ready for shipment.

Ready to be shipped - next stop, the United States and Europe - the Chinese make them, we consume and then they make more - is there an end to this cycle?