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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

China-based PC Manufacturer, Lenovo, To Open US Production Plant In Whitsett, North Carolina

10/03/2012
The world's second largest PC company, Lenovo Group, plans to invest approximately $2 million in a production complex that manufacturers personal computers in Whitsett, North Carolina, near Greensboro, creating 115 jobs.

Based in China, Lenovo said it is defying a trend that has seen electronics manufacturing jobs migrate oversees. Workers at the plant, located at 6540 Franz Warner Pkwy, will produce Lenovo's Think-brand notebook and desktop PCs, tablets, engineering workstations and servers for sale to domestic businesses, government and education customers, as well as consumers.

"Lenovo is establishing a U.S. manufacturing base because we believe in the long-term strength of the American PC market and our own growth opportunities here," said Yuanqing Yang, chairman and CEO, Lenovo. "As Lenovo expands globally, we are establishing even deeper roots in each major market. In addition to localized sales and marketing teams, in our major countries we are establishing an even stronger manufacturing footprint, investing in R&D and ensuring that we hire top local talent. This global reach with local excellence helps us become even faster, more innovative and more responsive to our customers around the world."

The U.S. manufacturing division, located within the firm's recently expanded 240,000 square foot distribution center in Whitsett, will be capable of turning out some of Lenovo's newest and most innovative products, such as the recently announced ThinkCentre M92p Tiny desktop and ThinkPad Tablet 2.

Lenovo officials said they believe having a manufacturing in the U.S. can provide the capability to deliver products to customers even more quickly and reliably in many situations, while offering an even broader and more valuable set of PC-related services.

The U.S. PC production line is the latest investment in Lenovo's aggressive strategy to expand its in-house manufacturing capabilities around the world, which the company believes will speed product innovation and support rapid business growth.

"Lenovo's decision to create electronic manufacturing jobs in North Carolina is a tremendous vote of confidence in the great skills and productivity of our state's workforce," said Gov. Bev Perdue.

While state officials said the firm has not asked for incentives, the Governor said; "We have a strong track record of commitments to education, training and economic policies that promote growth in our state's manufacturing sector. This decision by Lenovo clearly demonstrates that North Carolina is an attractive place where leading global businesses can thrive."

"I am very pleased with this announcement, and I congratulate Lenovo on their growth and on making the wise decision to invest in North Carolina and in our state's workforce," said U.S. Senator Richard Burr. "The trend lately has been for manufacturing jobs to be created abroad, but some of the brightest and best trained talent in these high-tech fields can be found right here in America. I am proud of Lenovo for recognizing the talent and the potential here in North Carolina, and I look forward to even more growth in this sector in the years to come."

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