Apple Mac Pro in 2019: Made in USA or Made Perfect?
The New York Times reports
“[…] when Apple began making the $3,000 computer in Austin, Tex., it struggled to find enough screws […] Tests of new versions of the computer were hamstrung because a 20-employee machine shop that Apple’s manufacturing contractor was relying on could produce at most 1,000 screws a day. […] Mr. Melo thought it was ironic that Apple, a leader in offshore manufacturing, had come calling with a big order. “It’s hard to invest for that in the U.S. because that stuff is purchased very cheaply overseas,” he said. […] Apple still assembles Mac Pros at the factory on the outskirts of Austin, in part because it has already invested in complicated and custom machines. But the Mac Pro has been a slow seller, and Apple has not updated it since its introduction in 2013.”
Apple has been under fire for not introducing a new Mac Pro. In 2017 the company said “We’re in the process of completely rethinking the Mac Pro”. Maybe rethinking the Mac Pro mean a little more than the users think.
The new Mac Pro 2019 will be modular and designed with feedback from pro users for professional users. That’s great news for everyone out there. Apple always shipped products when they thought they were ready.
The NYT story might hint to another possible scenario. Maybe Apple is thinking on building the Mac Pro in the USA but shifting most of its production around the United States.
Rethinking the Mac Pro, as Phil Schiller said, certainly includes rethinking its manufacturing process and building efficiency. That would be a perfect Mac Pro, not just Made in USA Mac Pro.