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Apple's Initial Investment in U.S. Mac Production Estimated to Create 200 Jobs
Bloomberg reports that Apple's $100 million plan to bring some Mac production back to the United States is likely to be a very modest operation at the outset, with some economists and industry experts projecting that the effort will create approximately 200 jobs.
Workers at Quanta Computer in Shanghai assembling MacBook Pro display enclosures
Apple's efforts to bring Mac production back to the United States come just as Lenovo, which purchased IBM's personal computer business in 2005, has announced plans to begin PC production in North Carolina. Lenovo's effort is also a modest one, projected to employ roughly 100 workers to produce several hundred thousand units per year.
The investment “sounds like a 200-job operation with about a million-unit output,” said Dan Luria, a labor economist at Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center in Plymouth, Michigan, who studies factory operations. Apple will probably rely on tax breaks and other incentives for the facility, he said. [...]Apple is presumed to be working with its primary manufacturing partner Foxconn on the project, as Foxconn has also expressed interest in building operations in the United States.
While Apple’s commitment could set a precedent for electronics suppliers, it probably doesn’t presage a large or rapid shift of production back to the U.S., said Michael Marks, the former CEO of Flextronics International Ltd., which was the largest contract manufacturer in the world before the rise of Foxconn. He also estimates $100 million may create about 200 jobs.
Workers at Quanta Computer in Shanghai assembling MacBook Pro display enclosures
Apple's efforts to bring Mac production back to the United States come just as Lenovo, which purchased IBM's personal computer business in 2005, has announced plans to begin PC production in North Carolina. Lenovo's effort is also a modest one, projected to employ roughly 100 workers to produce several hundred thousand units per year.
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70 months ago
I think it's an excellent start. You may say 200 jobs, big deal, but that's going to matter a heck of a lot to 200 people. They might even be decently paying jobs that really help support a family.
If Apple is actually doing this to help our country, I say good for them. It's really a great thing for them to do, and I have been pretty critical of Apple as of late. I like the move. 200 today could be 2,000 the year after, and 20,000 the year after that. Don't knock any kind of domestic job creation.
If Apple is actually doing this to help our country, I say good for them. It's really a great thing for them to do, and I have been pretty critical of Apple as of late. I like the move. 200 today could be 2,000 the year after, and 20,000 the year after that. Don't knock any kind of domestic job creation.
70 months ago
It's not much, but at least it's a start. Hopefully as time goes on we will see more progress on this.
70 months ago
This 200 number is almost as impressive as Apple's very generous 10% off deals during black Friday.
70 months ago
Look at it for what it is. A cost effective PR campaign. During the election season, Apple got a lot of bad press for manufacturing in China. This is a good argument against that because now Apple will be able to say that they created manufacturing jobs in the US and it will get them good media coverage.
70 months ago
This is what I read "Somebody looking to get their name in the paper pulled the number 200 out of their ass since virtually no details about which mac product have even been released."
Agreed.
Apple isn't even going to run the facility, it's going to be Foxconn. Foxconn isn't going to invest in a state of the art manufacturing facility just to do low volume Macs. Once the facility is opened, we'll know what kind of capacity it has. Foxconn may take on additional work or expand the facility as needed.
It also sounded like Apple intended to source more US parts and begin building a supply chain here in the US.
Beyond all that, American companies will build the facility, feed its employees and provide maintenance and security. While 200 people may work on Apple's assembly lines, this will create more than 200 jobs.
If the move is successful and a real supply chain can be developed, we'll also certainly see additional products (probably more Macs) manufactured here.
It has to start somewhere. There are a lot of risks to a US based manufacturing operation in 2013. Apple isn't going to throw all their eggs in that basket until they know they'll have a reliable supply chain and won't lose production as a result of over regulation, labor disputes or lawsuits.
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