Dave, I think James brings up a good point and which you, as the only investigative reporter in the area, are honor bound to determine. That is what are the tax breaks Micron has gotten ie property and/or corporate income tax, unemployment tax rate reductions, any sales tax rebates? I’m sure they’ve received some or all of these from the legislature as inducements to staying here.

Inquiring minds want to know.

And one other thing. I know that Micron has a duty to its shareholders, but I also remember when Micron was developed by the Parkinson brothers in the basement of the dentist’s office at Cole and Northview. Micron is a Boise company and should strive mightily to remain so.

Robert,

I think you may have commented under the wrong story, but if you did intend indeed to comment under the Micron story my following thoughts are just…

Your seeming glee of people in this valley losing jobs, your and my neighbors and friends is very upsetting and despicable. Please do not take joy from the pain and suffering that many families throughout the Treasure Valley are now in the midst of or are fearful everyday they go into work could be their last. Get over yourself and start caring about your neighbors! How would you feel at the thought of losing a job, your insurance, being able to take care of your family?

Remember karma is a bitch.

p.s. Dave, if Robert did indeed comment under the wwrong article, I apologize for my rant.

EDITOR NOTE–We can only wait for Robert to tell us. If he was aiming for the P&Z story, he needs to go to the bottom of the posting to comment. I will fix and delete this comment if that is the case.

I am not a current or past Micron employee, but I have some thoughts on the matter;

Without a significant reinvention of Micron, they are only delaying the inevitable. There are many market forces pulling Micron out of Boise, here are two:

#1) RAM has become a commodity, and commodities are manufactured where labor is cheap. While Boise is cheap compared to Silicon Valley, we are not cheap when compared to the Asian countries which staff Micron’s competition.

#2) Economic Clusters: Economic clusters are created where major OEM manufacturers and their suppliers co-locate. Creating over time a geographical location with an economical advantage for that product or service. 75% of the OEM products that use Micron’s products are manuactured in Asia. Micron’s competitors that have located themselves adjacent to the OEM’s have an advantage by operating within that cluster.

IBM has had its ups and down but has survived the comoditization of once high tech specialty products. IBM shifted from the world of low profit components to higher profit OEM final goods. As the OEM for computers became a crowded field, IBM shifted to a server and services based firm. IBM now enjoys profitbale supply chain enhamcenet services and has a diverse portfolio of products and services. I am not an IBM stock holder or employee, but it is a good example of a large company who has faced the same challenges as Micron, yet survived by reinventing itself and transforming to a learning organization.

Tips for Micron:

1) We appreciatte your commitement to Boise, your company performance and stock price is indicative of your commitment to keep jobs in Boise, when the winds were blowing to Asia many years ago.

2) Diversify your products through acqusitions that are up or down the supply chain.

3) Leverage partnerships with Texas Instruments and other firms in RFID technology that will replace barcodes and many other similar technology. Focus on nano-technology for memory capabilities in RFID chips, so this technology can do more than broadcast identity, but add value to the product packaging.

4) Become experts on bringing new technology to market and sell services assisting other companies bringing their innovative products to market. This not only provides a services based revenue, but positions Micron to take advanatge of new technology prior to their competitors. As technology continues to grow at light speed, it will become more and more critical that companies get products to market fast. Revamp existing manufactuing spaces for a modular style for re-tooling with minimal investment to produce new products for your clients, and drop the manufacturing as the new technology approachs maturity or commodity stage.

Most new technlogies are manufactured in the US, but as the product gains a following manufacturing is outsourced to lower cost nations. Position Micron as the first manufacturer of new technology and assist with bringing it to market, then quickly exit.

For what it is worth, there are my thoughts.

JJ,
You make some excellent points and IBM is a great example of a company that transitioned from manufacturing to an information service based organization.

Unfortunately, Micron is barely competent enough to get computer chips out the door. They will never make the transition that IBM has made. And I doubt they will transition into nanotech, either, which would seem to be one field they might have an outside shot at.

Their management simply lacks the vision to truly innovate. And their fontline engineers that are proven innovators at what they do have no say in the matter.

Tom
Been there 3 times now caused by corporate buy outs. Now I’m self employed. And yes these layoffs will effect me also, but I’m willing to except it. Quality of life is much more important to me. Something maybe you ought to think about.

A friend of mine in the electronics business – not Micron – says rumblings in the business are sounding more like 3,500 people getting the pink slip. That will certainly hurt a lot of people and make the already slumping housing market even worse. My friend would like to start his own business but because he has a young family he needs to have health insurance. The uncertainty of employment in the high tech industry is a real strain on all employees and their families.