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11K views 68 replies 37 participants last post by  SPAZ  
#1 ·
Burton Moving Snowboard Production Out of Vermont

South Burlington, VT - Burton Snowboards announced today that the company is closing its South Burlington manufacturing facility and moving all snowboard production to an Austrian plant by sometime in June.


Forty-three jobs are expected to be eliminated at its Vermont facility. Research and development will remain in Vermont, relocating from the Burton Manufacturing Center (BMC) in South Burlington to the company's global headquarters.

“It makes the most economic sense to produce all of our high-end snowboards in Austria. Here in Vermont, we will continue to focus on advanced product development, which will allow us to bring the latest snowboard technology to riders faster than ever before," said Burton CEO Laurent Potdevin.

"When I started Burton Snowboards in 1977, all we did was make snowboards in Vermont," said Jake Burton Carpenter, Founder and Chairman of Burton Snowboards. "Thanks to the BMC staff, we've excelled at prototyping and developing product in Vermont, which is why all four Burton Olympic halfpipe medals were won on snowboards coming out of our local factory. But simply put, it costs us significantly more to produce a board in Vermont than we are capable of selling it for, and sadly, this is not sustainable in the current economy."

Burton has been making lower-end snowboards in Austria for the past 25 years. The company's Vermont facility currently manufactures its high-end boards.

Burton Moving Snowboard Production Out of Vermont :: First Tracks!! Online Ski Magazine :: The ski and snowboard world at your keyboard
 
#3 ·
labour rates and economies of scale must be huge to offset logistical costs...this is just gonna add fuel to the already burning burton hate...hah


off topic question...does burton have any other north american factory for snowboards other than BMC? Cause my 2008 custom has a stamp that says "made in Canada"...lol
 
#7 ·
I know a bunch of guys that worked there but they all got out a few years ago. Now all that they were making was the one off pro type boards. It hasnt been a consumer board factory in years. What they are doing now is just getting rid of the extra production line that didnt do much in the way of production. That said I really think the loss of that is going to really hurt their sales especially in this area.
 
#10 ·
I was surprised to see the Rome Postermania I bought was made in Austria. It's well made though. I wonder if they will be pressed in the same factory. Wouldn't that be funny...
 
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#21 ·
i can see both sides of this. Yes, of course it sucks that 43 people will lose their jobs. this certainly isnt going to give Burton the employer of the year award. BUT, like mystic said, this was only a very small percentage of their current production. The majority of their manufacturing already takes place outside of the US. who is really upset that the $900 vapor is going to be made in austria and not the usa now? no one.
 
#22 ·
Snowolf said:
Not to mention that in Austria, where there is universal single payer health care, the company is not burdened with paying outrageous and ever rising insurance premiums to cover its workers.....:rolleyes:
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I've gotta call you out on this wolfie --- Although the fact of the matter is that the company isn't writing a check, the competitive environment in these countries is such (i.e., affects everyone, equally) that this isn't a competitive advantage that goes straight to the bottom line. It just gets competed away.

In these instances, everyone is burdened by health care costs; the costs are borne by the entire economy by higher tax rates and also borne disproportionately by the unemployed in the form of (often) higher unemployment rates. (The pre-crash unemployment rates in most of "developed" Europe like France/Germany was typically around 9-10%, or double the average unemployment rate 4-5% in the US.)

But I digress...
 
#23 ·
It's funny how people slam one brand or another usually but saying, "their boards are crap, they fall apart" etc. It might help them to know that over 50% of snowboards come from the same Austrian factory. Chances are the boards these guys are riding (and love) were made buy the same people as the boards they are slamming. Sure, technologies are different, but technologies don't really breakdown (has anyone ever seen Magnatraction turn into a radial sidecut?), it is the raw materials in the board and means by which they are held together that breakdown and fall apart...these are factory issues, not brand issues.
 
#25 ·
It makes sense. Austria is where a ton of boards are made for several companies. Plus, Burton very much is an international player in board sales. It's cheaper for them to build boards and export them back to the USA than to build them here and ship them to Europe. You avoid most of the import/export taxes by building a product and shipping it within the EU.

Really, I don't have much of a problem with this. Austria also has the talent pool to draw from for this large of a manufacturing operation.
 
#26 ·
what about most of the Burton boards, already mfg in Europe, which cost an arm and a leg more over there? The Burton Mayhem has a $400 MSRP and it lists in Euro websites for 400 Euro, given the exchange rate that's 25% more than it costs here!

Interested also to see what sort of impact this has on pricing in the U.S., if these are now all treated as imports, I have no idea what sort of trade agreements we have with the EU and what sort of duties/taxes might be imposed.
 
D
#31 ·
david_z said:
Interested also to see what sort of impact this has on pricing in the U.S., if these are now all treated as imports, I have no idea what sort of trade agreements we have with the EU and what sort of duties/taxes might be imposed.
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I don't think trade agreements exist for finished products. What will probably happen will be all the parts will be manufactured in Austria and then shipped back to North America where the final product will be assembled. This usually bypasses import taxes as components themselves aren't normally taxed. A Made in America sticker will be slapped on the product afterwards and many will be none the wiser. A lot of companies do this now.
 
#27 ·
OMFG!!! Burton is moving production overseas!!! How dare they turn their backs on us Americans!?!

I'm so mad that I'm going to buy a big fucking American muscle SUV that was built in Mexico to show my patriotism!









Moral of the story: Big fucking surprise. I'm glad that you're offended by this while you drive in your Ford Focus. Off-shoring sucks balls, but almost all big brand American manufacturers do this.
 
#28 ·
indeed. but until you spell overseas correct, we can't take it seriously. i keed, i keed. spelling isn't all that important.

but yeah. it would be nice to build here.. but if they build better boards, cheaper with less taxation on the factory.... why the hell wouldn't they do it?

eventually, big bad (north) america is going to lose all their jobs in production due to these simple facts. then, lots of people will be without jobs. then... hopefully the governments will find some ways to keep what little money we have in our pockets. and maybe by then we'll stop being such crazy consumers after seeing what can happen.

heh.. of course... that will happen.
 
C
#30 ·
I was in Shenyang, China, on business in February. One factory I visited makes steel valves for a Korean company. I was with the Korean owner, he has two factories in Korea.

He told me the employess in the Shenyang, China, facility make $200.00 a month, they work a 40 hour week. These were skilled workers, running cold forging machines, lathes, etc.

About a dollar an hour for skilled labor? Let's just say that if I were working in that Austrian factory that makes snowboards, I wouldn't be making any long-term financial decisions based on my job staying in Austria.
 
#35 ·
Ill preface my own reply to this by saying lets try to keep this non political. This isnt political its purely a numbers game. Two hundred American is a sweet bargain buts that not to say that those workers are unfairly paid. IF the standard of living puts the annual household income at $80 a month than $200 is rolling fat for them. THATS why its so easy for companies to go overseas. If we werent so damn stingy with our pennies over here and willing to only buy a product from a place that can sell it at its absolutely lowest price then off shore manufacturing wouldnt be so inviting. Yes however you are right I wouldnt be going and looking for a bigger house if I were one of those Austrians lol. In fact the conspiracy side of me thinks that China is the final plan but its easier and better PR for Burton to say were moving to Austria. Down the road when they shift to China no US jobs will be affected so there wont be an announcement. Again just the conspiracy thought process no evidence.
 
#42 · (Edited)
The (arguably)best snowboards on the market are made in Austria. Bigger factories and it's easier to control quality and cost in Austrian factories. Americans produce shoddy work at a bad price.

This is the Rossi Factory and HQ
Image

Look at that shit, wouldn't you want your board made here? Wouldn't you want to make boards here?
 
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