Gilmore, Jasion & Mahler of Maumee hosted a breakfast meeting July 8 to present a Manufacturing & Wholesale Distribution Industry Update to local business leaders at the Hilton Garden Inn in Perrysburg.

About 100 local business men and women attended the meeting that featured a presentation by Tom Murphy, executive vice present of RSM McGladrey, Inc. of Minneapolis, an accounting services firm for manufacturers.

Murphy said the manufacturing industry “is in better shape than most people give us credit.” His state of the industry presentation was based on the 2010 Manufacturing and Wholesale Distribution National Survey completed in March and issued in June.

“We’ve changed the way we make things and making different things. We’re making twice as much with half as many people while reducing costs and increasing productivity,” Murphy said about the manufacturing and distribution network.

Murphy reported that the U.S. was the number three exporter in the world in 2008 with a 21-22 percent share of global manufacturing, trailing European Union as the leader with China ranking second. The number of jobs in the manufacturing of exports has risen in the U.S., he said.

International sales have grown from 20 to 40 percent in the past two years with exports going to countries such as Australia, Brazil, Indian and Central America in addition to the traditional customers in Canada and Mexico, according to Murphy.

The fifth year of the survey included 1,061 companies with 68 percent in manufacturing and 32 percent in distribution. With 84 percent of responses coming from “C-level” executives, 62 percent came from companies larger than $25 million in sales.

Charlie Heid, a CPA and partner of the Manufacturing Specialist Group at Gilmore, Jasion & Mahler, discussed the effects that pending legislation in 2010 could have on businesses. According to the survey, 90 percent of respondents were concerned about pending legislation, the highest number ever recorded, said Murphy.

Heid covered the tax implications of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employees Act (HIRE) passed in March and the Health Care Reform legislation.

Terry Thomas of Gilmore, Jasion & Mahler and Jeff Barry, a partner in the venture capital firm Plymouth Management Company based in Ann Arbor, participated in the panel discussion, question and answer period following the presentations.

Murphy has 25 years of executive experience working for manufacturing company but now works for RSM McGladrey. He also serves on the board of directors for the National Association of Manufacturers and the advisory board of the National Manufacturing Institute.

Tags: Gilmore, Jasion & Mahler, Manufacturing & Wholesale Distribution Industry Update

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 8th, 2010 at 12:05 pm and is filed under Education, Toledo Business Link.
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