In January 2008, automobile manufacturer Volkswagen announced plans to build an automatic transmission and engine plant in South Carolina. Volkswagen apparently believed that it would be better able to compete and create value with U.S.-based facilities. Other companies, such as Fuji Film and Swiss chemical company Lonza have reached similar conclusions and taken similar actions. What sort of decision making processes would these foreign manufacturers of products use? And what sort of variables would these foreign manufacturers of products as diverse as automobiles, film and chemicals need to consider regardless of their conclusions?