Strength through globalization: we should create policies that promote free trade.

• Author: Solso, Tim
• Position: VIEWPOINT

FOR CUMMINS INC., 2004 was a very good year. After enduring the worst three-year recession in my more than 30 years at the company, Cummins rebounded with record sales and profits in 2004--and we're well on our way to an even better 2005.

Demand for our diesel engines, power generators, filters, turbochargers and alternators is strong around the world. Cost-cutting and quality-improvement efforts initiated in the early part of the decade are now a part of our culture. Our 28,000 employees worldwide--which include more than 5,000 in Indiana--have performed well, often under difficult circumstances.

With our recent success has come growth: Cummins added 635 jobs in the United States last year and another 200 in Indiana alone this year. At the same time, we have opened a state-of-the-art technical center in India and announced expansions and new joint ventures in China.

Cummins truly has become a global company with strong Indiana roots, and one that remains a net exporter of goods from the United States.

Much has been made about the so-called outsourcing of America. And it's true that many American companies, including Cummins, have looked outside the United States for high-quality, low-cost goods and labor to remain competitive.

Still, it's far from a zero-sum game: For Cummins, globalization--which goes well beyond finding low-cost foreign labor--is a critical part of our overall growth strategy

This year we are celebrating 30 years of doing business in China, where we have built 11 businesses. We have been a fixture in India for more than 40 years and have nine businesses in the world's largest democracy

These operations are busy serving their local markets. They, and our other international operations, generate significant profits that benefit the company, our employees, shareholders and communities everywhere.

To paraphrase a Chinese proverb: We should welcome what we cannot avoid. Globalization is a fact of business life today and lawmakers should throw their energy into creating policies that promote free...