Apple partner Foxconn Technology Co., Ltd. (TPE:2354) is making a significant investment in research and robots. The manufacturing company will spend $30 million in the next two years for a factory in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The new factory will assemble the components for internet servers and telecommunications equipment. Foxconn Technology Co., Ltd. (TPE:2354) will also invest $10 million for research and development at the Carnegie Mellon University. This was confirmed by Foxconn founder/chairman Terry Gou to Bloomberg.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) relies on Foxconn Technology Co., Ltd. (TPE:2354)’s China factories to manufacture their products including iPhones and iPads. Apple Insider added, “Companies such as Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) have come under fire for their reliance on labor from the Far East for the assembly of popular electronic devices. Critics have contended that wages are too low, and have pointed to highly publicized employee suicides as evidence of poor working conditions.”
Foxconn New factory is good news for Harrisburg
The new factory is good news for Harrisburg as it will create 500 jobs. The factory is an expansion from the existing factory which currently houses 30 employees.
This report confirms last year’s rumors which suggested Foxconn would build a new factory on United States soil.
Scott Andes (from Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Program) elaborated, “We’ve seen a lot of new insourcing. A lot of this is because companies are beginning to have a greater sense of the full cost of production. I think a lot of companies jumped the gun on labor costs alone” and didn’t take into account energy and transportation costs, which are relatively high in China when compared to the U.S.”
Foxconn Technology Co., Ltd. (TPE:2354)’s new factory is sure to bring economic relief to the city and state. Pennsylvania’s secretary for the department of Community and Economic Development C. Alan Walker shared his enthusiasm about Foxconn’s upcoming arrival. Walker added that Gou decided to make the investment in Pennsylvania right after he talked to the state governor.
