Ah, those lovely Americans. Always clamouring for the lost paradise of an industrial economy.
Looking at GDP figures, Germany was hit much harder by the global downturn so far than the US. And we do produce things you can touch with your hands here.
(Ironically, a few years ago Germans were worried about the heavy reliance on industry. Pundits worried about how Germany might close the gap to more modern service economies in the UK and US. They imagined a ladder of value adding that starts with agriculture, goes to industry, and then to services.)