intence

At least (well to me anyway) the Handmade in the USA was a way to differentiate them from Trek, Specialized, etc. Especially at entry level pricepoints. I'm not familiar at all with their non-road lineup or how well they did in that space.

I still think it's sad to see US jobs being lost by people who were building a quality product. I wonder if they could have turned a profit selling the CAAD9 frames alone (with fork) for $500 through retail channels. I know I would have bought one.

tkehler

Pardon my ignorance, but what's so good about this particular alu. frame that it inspires such brand loyalty?

Strong and stiff and transfers energy well, I reckon, but what else? Long lasting? Nice welds?

Just asking.

epenthetic

That was the first sale. The 2nd was part of Dorel's move to improve their lineup for the road/non-leisure crowd.

Curious, though.

Kelrod

I still don't see in the article where it says CAAD frames will not be made in the US.

jasonkang85

This news would cut down on the CAAD posts and recommendations.

epenthetic

If they move CAAD production to somewhere else (which they won't), I'm sure the sizing will change, so we will have twice as many CAAD posts, e.g. "What size pre-ROC CAAD9 should I get?" followed immediately by "Major sizing flaw in ROC CAAD9- Recall Will Happen".

sced

An alternative is to start your own engineering business. It may take some years to get it going but if you're good and build a reputation for excellence, you won't have to answer to buttheads any more.

asv

MBA's are a dime a dozen anymore. An MBA is no guarantee of success, and engineers do not typically make good MBA's.

toshi

Alu frame production is staying in Bethel PA. Only the carbon stuff is moving to Taiwan.

Bacciagalupe

"Bicycle frame manufacturing will be shifted to Taichung over the course of this year, allowing the reduction of Bedford workforce from 300 workers to 100." High-end frames, possibly including a few CAAD frames, will stay in the US, but that's not too clear from the article.


Personally, I don't see what all the fuss is about. There's a major recession, bike sales nose-dived in Q4 2008 (due to both the recession and the drop in gas prices), so retrenchment is inevitable. They're keeping multiple factories, including high-end, in the US. Prices may fall a bit, and it's unlikely quality will drop precipitously; it's not like there is rampant evidence that frames made in Asia fail after 200 miles. AFAIK pretty much every Shimano component is made in Asia, including the drool-inducing Dura-Ace. And, last but not least, as long as consumers demand high quality products at the lowest possible prices, any company that can't compete will end up laying off employees anyway.

I do sympathize with the 200 workers who lost their jobs, but there is no way to assure every factory worker life-time employment.

adamt

now I wonder if I should keep the one Im selling.

Might be worth a bit more next year.

Cue

How is people losing jobs and manufacturing locations moving a BFD? What's the deal about this CAAD frames anyway?

Banzai

Fixed it for ya.

Before Levis moved overseas, it cost $3-$5 to make each pair of jeans in the US. Those jeans then sold for over $50.

Now it costs $0.50 to make each pair. Apparently 1,000% margin is no longer good enough.

fa63

This is what I have heard from credible sources as well.

As for everyone complaining about not being able to find jobs as engineers; go get at least a MS in your field and see if you can't still find a job. An engineer with a BS is a glorified technician, and lack of continued education has made our profession a commodity that can be outsourced. Engineering is (well, maybe I should say was) a learned profession (just like law and medicine) and if you are not willing to continue learning, you won't get far. MBAs are dime a dozen these days, but engineers with solid technical skills are not (personal skills also help tremendously and a lot of engineers need more help in this area, more than they need a MBA). Specializing in an area of interest where you know more than 95 percent of your fellow engineers is also a great way to make sure that you keep your job for a long time and get paid well doing it.

Rant off.

sced

Well said

botto 

you're an idiot.

hey rip van winkel, wake up and smell the decade.

pinwheel

I don't know anything about the reputation of engineers from your school but all the engineers I graduated with last year have jobs. only one is not still in engineering but he got sucked up into some business program that was going to re-train him to do something else and pay him 90k at the same time. I only applied to niche field jobs while I worked at a small company and ended up getting offered a job in my niche field that I didn't even apply to. If your friends can't find a job, I wouldn't blame it on the field. School maybe, but since all engineering schools get accredited similarly, I think its more likely they just didn't arrange a set of courses that accelerated them into a specific arena and now they have nothing to set themselves apart.

And about the bikes. Why is there such a feeling that American workers build it better? When these sorts of topics pop up, my only thought is that at least it isn't being built by GM. There is absolutely no reason that the factories in China & Taiwan would be unable to match the quality here. this is an aluminum bicycle we are talking about, not a stealth fighter. There is plenty of resources available in the open on how to bend, shape, weld, and machine aluminum.

DiabloScott

Fixed.

Klein was going to sue Cannondale for copying its strategy of selling out but got overthrown on lack of standing.

Quote from a movie I saw last night... "We need our best brains on this! Somebody call India."

Quest2008

Sorry, messed up my witty post.

bigfred 

ans: https://velonews.com/article/90148/ca...n-to-end-frame

lukasz

It isn't about the bikes. Or if it is then only to the less astute folks.

gregf83 

Gross margins for Levi's products is approx 50% which means it costs them $50 for a product they sell for $100. I think you're exagerating a little...

Gross margins for Dorel's leisure products (which includes Cannondale) are around 25% so it's not like making and selling bikes is an easy or high margin business.

Dorel was forced to move its manufacturing offshore because consumers weren't willing to pay more for a Made in USA product vs competitive products made in Asia.

BHBiker

Cannondale's parent says the decision to end frame production in the U.S. was difficult

"The people of Bedford are the soul of Cannondale."

By Steve Frothingham
Posted Apr. 2, 2009
Dorel Industries executives say it pained them to end U.S. production of Cannondale bicycles, but said the cost of domestic production made the decision "crystal clear" from an economic perspective.
Dorel, which bought Cannondale Sports Group last February, plans to end frame production at its Bedford, Pennsylvania, factory by the end of the year. Bedford's staff will be reduced from about 300 to about 100. The company also announced it plans to expand its design and engineering center in Connecticut as it invests in product innovation for the Cannondale, Schwinn, GT and Mongoose brands.
"It was painful to make the decision we took today; the people in Bedford are the soul of Cannondale," Jeff McGuane, president of Cannondale Sports Group's North American division, told VeloNews Thursday. "We've got a bright future for Bedford, for the team that's remaining and hopefully will expand in the future; but right now the economics around frame construction are just crystal clear."
Bedford will continue to assemble Cannondale bikes using frames made in Asia. The facility also will manufacture and assemble some Cannondale suspension forks and cranks, produce prototype frames and conduct quality control testing.
Dorel is closing some of its relatively small product development centers in Longmont, Colorado, and Lake Forest, California. McGuane said at least some employees from those facilities are being offered jobs in Connecticut. Function for some employees at the company's Madison, Wisconsin, facility will move to Connecticut, also, as the Madison location is refocused on Dorel's mass market brands, including Pacific Cycle.
"We are doing all we can do to maintain our talent base," McGuane said.
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Bethel, Connecticut, will become the hub of product development for all the company's enthusiast-quality bike brands: Cannondale, GT, Schwinn and Mongoose.
The Bethel facility will be expanded and the company will invest in more testing and development equipment, McGuane said. The company recently launched two new internal engineering groups, one focused on materials, manufacturing and suspension, and the other focused on developing battery technology for power-assisted bikes, primarily sold under the Schwinn label.
"We will build, test, and collaborate in Bethel," Robert Baird, the president of Dorel's recreation and leisure division, told VeloNews on Thursday. "We are very focused on, how do we build the best innovative product that someday hopefully (are ridden by) most riders in the Giro or the Vuelta or the Tour de France," he said.
Cannondale's "made in the USA" designation has long been a large part of the brand's marketing, but Baird and McGuane said the investment in quality and innovation will determine the brand's future success. "We are putting our money where our mouth is," Baird said

BHBiker

Looks like my Six13 is a keeper if only for that iconic "MADE IN THE USA" sticker splashed on the stays....

Its just not the same seeing your SuperSix with "MADE IN TAISHUNG" :-)

Walter

I remember all that drama. I bought my 1st C'dale in 1986. Still have that bike. It stays at the in-laws in TX with another bike so my wife and I have something to ride while the kids visit grandma and grandpa. I don't know how many people told me Klein was gonna "sue my bike off the road." Never happened but now one wonders about the future of the line.

To the point....

I don't know if the CAADs are going offshore or not based on these reports but I have to admit it does matter to me. I'm perfectly aware that Asian made bikes are equal in quality to North American ones but they don't often sell for a whole lot less, do they? I will also confess to some misgivings about products from mainland China. Not the most enlightened regime in the world are they? Political oppression, religious discrimination, lead paint on toys. ethylene glycol in pet food. Yep, that's what I look for.

I know their products are ubiquitous and I own dozens of them but I can still have my qualms. Also, as I've noted above cost-savings on high-end bikes are not passed to the consumer (see Cervelo).

So, since there is not always much of a price incentive to buy out-sourced bikes I don't feel it is chauvinistic to "buy American" if possible. It may be getting a little bit harder though.

Of course for 30+ years now I've been in love with Italian mde bikes.