October 8, 2003

Carrier is leaving Syracuse
Posted by jbutler@bostonworks.com">Jason Butler at 10:51 AM -

As you all know, I'm one of those horribly annoying Syracuse grads who congregate here in Boston. I don't get back up to the 'Cuse often, but I still keep tabs. That's why this story jumped out at me this week.

Carrier Air Conditioning is leaving Syracuse, moving its manufacturing overseas and leaving thousands jobless. This hits me personally, not just because I spent two years walking around the Carrier Dome on the way from Sadler Hall to class, but because I interned at this very factory.

Back in '93, Carrier brought a bunch of us OPM (Operations Management) majors in to help them with their kaizen transformations and other aspects of Total Quality Management. Now, they've decided the best way to improve their quality is to get the hell out of town.

The story is a sad one, told many times.

...