Companies are more intrigued than ever by Mexican manufacturing prospects. Mexico unseated China as the top exporter to the U.S. for the first time in 2023 after a multi-year climb. During a similar time period, the Laredo, Texas and Tucson, Arizona markets have skyrocketed in popularity.
Mexico is expected to continue to win business – and grab headlines – as the well-documented and ongoing nearshoring trend continues. In fact, foreign domestic investment in Mexico hit a record high over the past two years.
It will take several years to see the full impact of manufacturing investments in Mexico, according to Lance Dixon, Werner’s Senior Vice President of Mexico, Canada and Temperature-Controlled divisions. That is because building facilities from the ground up is inevitably a complex and time-consuming process.
That said, manufacturers with facilities already in Mexico have flexed up their operations with relative speed. In some cases, this can be as simple as adding an additional shift to an existing operation. Dixon has seen many of his customers take this route.