[Leica] outsourcing components

[Erwin Puts <imxputs@knoware.nl>]

Someone wrote at least in part that a company that does outsourcing 
is per definition an assembler, not a manufacturer. This person has a 
queer and completely outdated view of modern industrial manufacturing 
and the workings of the market for specialized products.

Wish this person would look at a company report from BMW, 
Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, Porsche, Volvo, Saab, Nikon, Honda, Apple, 
IBM, etc and try to find the description about the logistics and the 
amount of buying in from outside companies. Most modern companies in 
the western world do the three things that they know best: design a 
product, find suppliers for many components and assemble the product 
to their specification and design/production philosophy.
If E. Leitz had understood the signs of the time you would be able to 
buy E.Leitz Wetzlar products today. Leitz went down in my view 
because they had committed themselves to a production quality that 
was impossible to guarantee within economical means. Too much manual 
adjustments to counter production defects. This is documented by a 
British report.  The myth of superior production quality at Leitz is 
easily blown apart by looking at the numerous adjustment screws, the 
many subassemblies to make tolerance adjustments during assembly etc.
It is a pity that nostalgia still  produces such a a strong filter to 
reality that the past is viewed as heaven. A realistic assessment of 
current performance and capabilities of any company  is the least one 
should try.

Erwin