VOA常速英语2015--从马林钢丝公司看美国制造业的发展

从马林钢丝公司看美国制造业的发展

When Drew Greenblatt bought Marlin Steel Wire Products in 1998, the workers were paid minimum wage and bent¹ steel by hand to form wire baskets to hold bread.

1998年德鲁·格林布拉特买下马林钢丝产品公司时，工人们当时拿的还是最低薪，而且是用一双肉手把铁丝编成装面包的篮子。

Fast forward 17 years,and Marlin Steel's nearly 30 workers now use American steel and million-dollar robotic machinery² to manufacture products exported overseas while being paid a competitive wage with full benefits and performance incentives³.

时光荏苒，17年之后，现如今马林钢丝公司近30名员工使用的是美国钢丝及价值百万美元的机器人生产出口到海外的产品，而且拿到的是具有竞争力的薪资，还享受全部的福利和奖励机制。

“That's how we differentiate⁴ from China. It's not by having lower-paid employees. It's by having the best innovations, the smartest ideas and then having the talent to create those ideas.”

“这是我们与大洋对面国家截然不同的地方。我们靠的不是低薪雇员。而是通过最好的创新、最聪明的想法及雇佣拥有这些想法的人才。”

This idea was echoed by President Obama on January 9 when he and Vice⁵ President Joe Biden toured a polymer factory in Tennessee.

而1月9日奥巴马总统与副总统拜登参观田纳西州一家工厂时也提出了同样的看法。

The president highlighted the gains in manufacturing with 786,000 jobs added in the last 58 months and announced a new hub that would bring the government, companies, and colleges together to create more high-tech⁶ manufacturing opportunities.

总统特别强调了制造业过去将近58个月里增加的786000份工作的成就。他还宣布成立一个创新中心让政府、公司和大学一起携手创造更多的高科技制造业机会。

“We've got the most dynamic economy in the world, and we've got the best business people in the world and the best universities in the world. Let's put them all together and make sure they're working to create more good jobs and more opportunity for the American people.”

“我们拥有世界上最具活力的经济，最顶尖的商业人才以及全世界最好的大学。让我们帮助他们齐心协力为美国人民创造更多的好工作和就业机会。”

Back at Marlin Steel in Baltimore, the innovation is driven by a team of mechanical engineers who design sheet metal fabrications for companies like German engineering company Bosch and Japanese car maker⁷ Toyota.

让我们再次把视线拉回到巴尔的摩的马林钢丝公司，创新的核心动力是一个机械工程师团队。他们为德国博世和日本丰田汽车这样的公司设计金属钣金。

Workers, like Iraq War veteran Brent Fox, make the ideas a reality.

比如参加过伊拉克战争的退伍军人布伦特·福克斯这样的工人就把这样的想法变成现实。

Fox has moved from line worker to team leader after learning new skills on the job and said he marvels⁸ at how the small wire-product company is able to compete against its foreign counterparts.

在工作岗位上学到新技能后福克斯从一线工人成为小组负责人。他表示自己自豪的是这家小不点的钢铁产品公司能够与外国公司竞争。

“Working and living in a global economy, it's pretty impressive that places like this still exist in America, when it's so much easier to just go buy it overseas and have it shipped.”

“活在全球经济当中并且从事相关工作，这样一家公司仍然在美国存在，而且进口这样的产品非常便捷，实在令人印象深刻。”

As for Greenblatt, he said that with more trade deals, a better tax structure and greater protections for intellectual property, American companies like his can contribute to growing the U.S. middle class and helping⁹ the economy surge.

格林布拉特表示随着更多贸易协议的签署、更完善的税务结构以及更好的知识产权保护，像他这样的美国公司可以帮助美国中产阶级成长并促进经济繁荣发展。

“Mark my words, the American manufacturing renaissance¹⁰ is here and it's about to really blossom.”

“记住我说的，美国制造业已经迎来了复兴，而且即将繁荣。”

 

Greenblatt said Marlin Steel is already adding more factory space to bring in more technology and hire more engineers.

格林布拉特表示为了引进更多技术并雇佣更多工程师他的公司已经扩大了厂房面积。

1 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

2 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

3 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

4 differentiate   

vi.(between)区分；vt.区别；使不同

参考例句：

• You can differentiate between the houses by the shape of their chimneys.你可以凭借烟囱形状的不同来区分这两幢房子。
• He never learned to differentiate between good and evil.他从未学会分辨善恶。

5 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

6 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

7 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

8 marvels   

n.奇迹( marvel的名词复数 )；令人惊奇的事物（或事例）；不平凡的成果；成就v.惊奇，对…感到惊奇( marvel的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The doctor's treatment has worked marvels : the patient has recovered completely. 该医生妙手回春，病人已完全康复。 来自辞典例句
• Nevertheless he revels in a catalogue of marvels. 可他还是兴致勃勃地罗列了一堆怪诞不经的事物。 来自辞典例句

9 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

10 renaissance   

n.复活，复兴，文艺复兴

参考例句：

• The Renaissance was an epoch of unparalleled cultural achievement.文艺复兴是一个文化上取得空前成就的时代。
• The theme of the conference is renaissance Europe.大会的主题是文艺复兴时期的欧洲。