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Xiaomi unveils its most advanced factory yet, boasting 10 million flagship smartphone production capacity

Soumyakanti — Sun, 18 Feb 2024 11:58:15 +0000

Xiaomi‘s founder Lei Jun unveiled a significant milestone for the company today: the official opening of its smart factory in Changping, Beijing. This isn’t just any factory; it boasts a self-developed production line capable of churning out over 10 million flagship smartphones per year, marking Xiaomi’s first large-scale, self-owned manufacturing facility and a giant leap in its smart manufacturing ambitions.

Xiaomi’s Smart Manufacturing Leap: Changping Factory Begins Operations

This news comes just days before the highly anticipated launch of the Xiaomi 14 Ultra, scheduled for February 22nd. Interestingly, Lei Jun confirmed that both the Xiaomi 14 Bay Blue and the 14 Ultra’s innovative technologies were validated in this very factory.

But what exactly makes this factory so smart? It boasts a staggering 96.8% self-developed rate for component testing and packaging equipment and a perfect 100% for its factory software. This degree of in-house development translates to a highly automated and digitized production process, capable of self-analysis and decision-making based on real-time data. In essence, this factory can learn and evolve on its own, ensuring consistent quality and efficiency.

This isn’t Xiaomi’s first foray into smart manufacturing. The company’s first intelligent factory, located in Beijing Yizhuang, started operations in late 2019. However, the Changping factory dwarfs its predecessor in scale, boasting a footprint ten times larger and encompassing a second-generation intelligent production line for smartphones. This line covers everything from circuit board mounting and testing to final assembly, packaging, and shipping, with an estimated output value of a whopping 60 billion yuan annually.

The 14 Ultra, set to be unveiled on February 22nd, is expected to feature a powerful Sony LYT900 main camera with OIS and a variable aperture of up to f1.6. Additionally, it will boast three secondary cameras, including a 50MP ultrawide, a 50MP telephoto, and a 50MP periscope telephoto lens.

Moreover, it is expected to sport a flat back and display, a 6.73-inch AMOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ support, and a titanium frame option. It will weigh under 220 grams and include a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, 16GB RAM, 512GB storage, and a 5300mAh battery with fast charging.

Intel to Build New Chip Plant in Germany with €10 Billion Government Subsidy

Oğuz Çakır — Mon, 19 Jun 2023 15:13:53 +0000

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on the technology industry. Many companies have realized the risks of relying on a single region for production, and are now looking to diversify their supply chains. For example, Apple has started manufacturing some of its iPhones in India. In a similar move, Germany and Intel have agreed on a deal that will see the US chipmaker receive €10 billion in subsidies to build a semiconductor manufacturing facility in Germany. Here are the details…

Germany, Intel Agree Chip Plant Subsidies Worth €10 Billion

As we mentioned before, technology companies are investing in production in different countries. This is good news for the regions where these companies invest, as it means economic development and job creation. Governments are signing agreements with tech giants to provide them with incentives and infrastructure facilities. The latest of these agreements was signed between Germany and Intel.

The agreement, which was signed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger on Monday, will see Intel build a new chip plant in the city of Magdeburg. The plant is expected to create thousands of jobs and cost around €30 billion to build. A significant part of this will be paid by Germany.

The subsidies will come in the form of both financial aid and price caps on energy. The financial aid will be used to help Intel cover the cost of building the plant, while the price caps on energy will help to keep costs down for Intel once the plant is operational. The agreement is a major boost for Intel, which has been looking to expand its manufacturing capacity in Europe.

The agreement is also a major win for Germany, which is looking to become a leading producer of semiconductors. The country has a strong manufacturing base, and the new chip plant will help to create jobs and boost economic growth. The new chip plant in Magdeburg is expected to be operational by 2027.

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Apple contract manufacturer Foxconn temporarily shuts down Shenzhen factory

Jeet — Tue, 15 Mar 2022 00:54:05 +0000

Foxconn, the contract manufacturer of Apple’s iPhone models, has been forced to shut down its production facility in Shenzhen as the government has ordered lockdown because of new cases of COVID-19.

Because of this new lockdown and shutdown of the factory, there could be some delay in shipments of some Apple devices for which Foxconn is responsible for production, which also includes some iPhone models.

The whole city of Shenzhen in China has been placed under lockdown for one week and everything is closed for the 17.5 million residents of the city, including bus and subway system of transportation.

Everything that is not considered essential has been shut down for a week, including the Foxconn factory. The company said that its Shenzhen operations would be suspended until further notice and added that it will now depend on backup plans to prevent disruptions.

Multiple Chinese provinces and cities have tightened restrictions, a move which is in line with Beijing’s zero-tolerance goal of suppressing contagion as quickly as possible.

If the new COVID-19 cases keep rising in China, then the lockdown period could be increased, disrupting production and supply chains, leading to a shortage of chips and components needed to make devices. Some reports indicate that the total number of COVID cases in China this year has already topped the numbers seen throughout 2021.

Foxconn to start mass production of electric vehicles in Thailand in 2024

Jeet — Tue, 08 Feb 2022 00:34:00 +0000

Foxconn Group, the company known for being a contract manufacturer for Apple, is rapidly trying to increase its footprints and has already announced its plans for entering the rapidly growing electric vehicles market.

The National Petroleum Corporation of Thailand (PTT) has announced that its electric vehicles factory in the country, which is a joint venture with the Foxconn Group, will start mass production in the first quarter of 2024.

If the reports are to be believed, then both these companies are planning to invest around $1 billion in setting up this new factory in Thailand. The National Petroleum Corporation of Thailand estimates annual production of about 50,000 vehicles initially which will later be expanded to a capacity of about 150,000 vehicles.

It’s noteworthy that Foxconn isn’t limiting the electric vehicles production business to Thailand but it is spreading it across regions. Just a few days ago, the company announced that it is partnering with the Indonesian Investment Ministry along with other firms for the development of electric vehicles in the region.

Prior to that, the Taiwanese company had also signed an agreement to acquire its first electric vehicle manufacturing plant in North America. It is a part of $280 million in deals with U.S. electric vehicle startup Lordstown Motors that also include a share purchase. It is also considering setting up electric vehicle plants in India, Europe, and either North or South America by the year 2024.

A few months ago, Foxconn unveiled three prototype EV models that the company aims to release in commercial quantities sometime this year. The three new prototypes are a culmination of Foxconn’s partnership with Taiwan’s Yulon Motors.

Foxconn resumes Apple iPhone production facility in India after protests

Jeet — Thu, 13 Jan 2022 04:49:13 +0000

Almost three weeks after it was shut down amid major protests by the employees, the Foxconn plant for Apple iPhone production located in Sriperumbudur near Chennai is now partially reopening.

For those who are returning to work, the company is conducting COVID-19 tests. As per the report, the factory reopened with one shift and 120 workers, adding it would take over two months for the Foxconn plant to produce at full capacity.

The production plant, which employs about 17,000 people and operates three shifts, was closed on 18th December 2021 after 250 workers fell sick with food poisoning, leading to workers organizing protests.

The workers alleged that the food at Foxconn’s dormitories was stale and sometimes crawled with worms. Further, the toilets were unhygienic and inadequate, without running water. Additionally, dozen of them were forced to share small rooms.

After the protests last month, Apple had put the Foxconn production plant on probation, demanding rapid action. The US-based tech giant has said that the plant remains on probation and that it would continue monitoring conditions at workers’ dormitories and dining halls, along with independent auditors.

The facility in question had recently started trial production of the latest iPhone 13 model but now it may get delayed as it is expected to take more than two months for the production to resume at its full capacity.

Tesla Gigafactory Berlin expected to produce 30,000 cars in H1 2022

Jeet — Mon, 29 Nov 2021 00:51:47 +0000

With the Tesla Gigafacotry Berlin, the brand is setting up its first manufacturing facility in Europe and is also touted to be the company’s most advanced, sustainable and efficient facility so far. Now, it seems to be all set to start production of cars.

As per the new report from German media outlet Automobilwoche, the Berlin Gigafactory only requires the final operating permit from the environmental department and after that arrives, the company will be able to start manufacturing in the country.

The company is expected to start production in the Berlin Gigafactory next month, i.e. in December 2021, and by the end of the first half of 2022, it is expected to produce around 30,000 cars in this new factory.

It is being said that the company was set to start production of its cars in June this year but was postponed because Tesla didn’t receive the necessary EIA certificate in time. Now, the company is expected to get the required clearences within a few days.

If the reports are to be believed, then the Tesla Berlin Gigafactory has completed the production of around five Model Y cars but not on the production line. It is expected to start the production from January at a rate of around 1,000 cars per week and then will gradually increase the production rate.

Apart from this car production factory, the US-based electric car maker is also gearing up to build a large battery production plant at the same location in Glenheide near Berlin. But before that, the Tesla Gigafacotry for car production will operate at full capacity.

Foxconn acquires Lordstown Motors’ Ohio EV factory in a deal worth $230 million

Jeet — Fri, 01 Oct 2021 17:23:50 +0000

Foxconn, the company known for manufacturing Apple iPhones, is buying an automotive factory from EV maker Lordstown Motors for around $230 million.

As per the deal, Foxconn will be building Lordstown Motors’ electric pickup truck at the plant. Further, the EV maker will remain a tenant there and has also agreed to “provide Foxconn with certain rights with respect to future vehicle programs.”

Additionally, Foxconn is also buying $50 million worth of Lordstown Motors shares. The startup has been struggling and had talked about the need to raise money quickly in order to survive, despite going public last year.

With this deal, Foxconn has now entered the automotive factory space and now has a significant presence in the United States. It seems that the Taiwan-based company will now try to establish itself as a global electric vehicle manufacturer.

The companies hope to complete a purchase agreement by 31st October and complete the deal by April 30. Foxconn has said that as part of the deal, Fisker Inc. will be allowed to make vehicles with the Taiwanese conglomerate in the Ohio factory.

Lordstown Motors had purchased a 6.2-million-square-foot facility from General Motors in 2019. Recently, it was planning to rent out space at the factory in an effort to make money amid a serious cash crunch.

The EV maker is facing lots of trouble. Its CEO was forced out after he was caught exaggerating pre-orders for its electric truck. The company has now lowered its initial production goals. The Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission have launched probes into Lordstown Motors, and the company is going through financial crises, with only have enough money to survive through mid-2022.

Some Apple suppliers halt production for a few days in China due to energy crisis

Jeet — Tue, 28 Sep 2021 02:44:46 +0000

Some of the contract manufacturers and suppliers of Apple in China have temporarily shut down production for a few days. This is because of the government initiating a crackdown as the country faces an energy crisis.

The move is a part of the Chinese government’s new regulations related to the use of energy in the country. However, the timing is crucial as tech giant Apple has just launched its latest iPhone 13 series smartphones and the backorders are rising as the shipment dates for the new Apple iPhone models keep getting pushed.

While not all the suppliers of Apple are affected, those factories which manufacture parts like motherboards and speakers have to shut down their manufacturing operations for a few days. Analysts claim that the reduction in production due to the power shortage is resulting in a drag on the country’s economic growth.

There’s a shortage of coal and the tougher standards related to emissions, combined with the strong demand from manufacturers have resulted in coal prices surging and it has now hit a record high which is forcing users to ration energy.

Eson Precision Engineering, an affiliate of Foxconn and a key supplier for Apple and Tesla, has suspended its production for a week. On the other hand, Unimicron Technology has stopped production in two cities until the end of the month.

As of now, there’s no information about whether any of these shutdowns will directly impact Apple’s manufacturing plans. Along with the iPhone 13 series, the US-based technology giant has also launched a new iPad, iPad Mini, and Apple Watch Series 7.

Major fire at Apple supplier’s factory near Shanghai kills eight

Jeet — Mon, 26 Apr 2021 12:47:59 +0000

Fire in a factory of Casetek Group, a Taiwan-based electronic manufacturer which is also a supplier to technology giant Apple, near Shanghai in China has killed eight people, including two firefighters, reports SCMP.

As per the statement from the government of Jinshan District related to this incident, the fire broke at the factory on Thursday at 1:30 PM and raged until Friday morning, killing two firefighters and six civilians.

The fire was fierce that over 900 firefighters, 123 fire engines, and eight robots were deployed to fight the fire. Officials are still investigating how the fire started, but the flames quickly engulfed the large plant when it gathered momentum.

While the cause of the fire still remains unknown, the investors are trying to determine it. The official statement from the government claims that this fire has not caused significant air or water pollution to the local environment.

Shengrui Electronic Company was acquired in 2020 by Casetek Group, which itself is owned by Pegatron. Casetek is known to be a producer of casings for Apple‘s MacBook lines as well as iPads. It remains to be seen how much of an impact this fire will have on the company’s supply chain.

India is offering financial incentives to Samsung for setting up display factory

Jeet — Mon, 14 Dec 2020 05:31:23 +0000

India’s one of the largest states, Uttar Pradesh, has confirmed that it will be providing financial incentives to the South Korean giant Samsung Electronics to set up a display factory in the region, which is expected to cost about $655 million.

In a statement given to the media, the state of Uttar Pradesh has claimed that the company is moving its factory from China to India. This is being viewed as a move that will help boost the Make in India initiative that aims to project India as a manufacturing hub.

Samsung will be getting 7 billion rupees in financial benefits for setting up the display plant. On top of that, the state government has also confirmed that the company will get an exemption from a tax payable on the transfer of land for the factory.

The unit is expected to be operational from next year, but the exact timeline is not yet known. Once the factory starts operations, it is expected to create 510 direct jobs. It’s noteworthy that Samsung already has the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturing plant in Uttar Pradesh, India.

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The development comes just months after the Indian government approved financial incentives of around $6.5 billion for 16 countries to boost domestic production of smartphones. The list of companies set to benefit from this includes Samsung, along with Apple suppliers such as Foxconn and Wistron, among others.

Many companies are now looking to India as a potential replacement for China when it comes to manufacturing. Apart from Samsung, several other companies are moving their production to India, including Apple, which is now making several of its products in India is expected to expand the same in the coming months.

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Huawei’s first chipset manufacturing facility completes construction

Jeet — Mon, 07 Dec 2020 06:09:46 +0000

As China is gearing up to become self-reliant in the chipset manufacturing sector and reduce its reliance on other countries, Chinese giant Huawei Technologies has reached a milestone in that direction.

A report reveals that Huawei’s first domestic chip manufacturing factory, called Wuhan Huawei Optical Factory Project (Phase II), has officially completed construction. The project is said to be spread across 208,900 sq. mt. and is located in Wuhan Optics Vallery Center.

This is also Huawei’s largest Research & Development base in China’s central region. It includes FAB Production Plant, CUB Power Station, PMD Software Factory, and some other supporting facilities. It will also sever as the company’s internal optical capability center, smart terminal R&D center, and some other cutting-edge technologies.

Once the project is completed, it will start the production work as Huawei’s first chip manufacturing factory in China. This will enable the Chinese giant to have a complete semiconductor industrial chain — from chip design to manufacturing, to testing and packaging, which is a rare feat.

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But it seems that this won’t be the only such facility from Huawei. As per another report, the company is planning to have another chipset factory in Shanghai and will be managed by a Shanghai-based R&D company on behalf of Huawei.

Although the chipset factory is being set up, it won’t be able to compete with the current leaders. Huawei will start making 45nm chips next year and will progress to 28nm chipsets by 2022. This is nowhere near 5nm chipsets being launched nowadays that powers the premium flagship smartphones.

The development comes after the United States government imposed sanctions on Huawei and barred the company from procuring chipset or any technology that is made in the US. With the supply of necessary components halted, Huawei decided to focus on becoming self-reliant to keep the business afloat.

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Samsung deploys personnel in India to set up its OLED production facility

Jeet — Fri, 06 Nov 2020 05:34:57 +0000

Samsung Electronics, a leading company in the consumer and durable electronics market, has a display manufacturing arm named Samsung Display. Earlier this year, the company announced the expansion of its operations in India.

Now, the South Korean giant has said that it is sending hundreds of employees to India as the company is looking to wrap up the construction of its OLED production plant at Noida City of Gautam Buddh Nagar district in Uttar Pradesh.

As per the report, members of the team will leave on Saturday and will go through COVID-19 testing at the New Delhi airport. They will be quarantined before visiting the factory and start working to finish the construction of the facility.

Samsung Display had formed a regional subsidiary in India in the month of July in 2019. The factory, which will be making OLED panels, should be operational sometime in the first half of next year, i.e. H1 2021.

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A couple of months ago, it was reported that the company could be investing around $705.75 million to set up the facility, which is expected to create around 1,300 jobs. Samsung will get tax benefits and other incentives from the Indian government for setting up this new display plant.

Samsung Display currently has three OLED plants in China, nine plants in South Korea, and one plant in Vietnam. The company has already announced that in order to focus on OLED and QLED, it will exit the LCD business.

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Apple supplier Unimicron Technology’s plant catches fire in Taiwan

Jeet — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 06:30:07 +0000

A plant owned by Unimicron Technology, which makes printed circuit boards (PCBs) caught fire on Wednesday in which one person has suffered minor injuries while two others have been rescued by the firefights.

As per the report coming from Taiwanese media, after an emergency call, Taoyuan City Fire Department sent 67 firefighters, 19 fire engines, and three ambulances to the site to battle the fire and support rescue efforts.

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While the cause for the fire is being investigated by the fire department, firefighter squad chief Lai Chih-Chung has said that the preliminary findings indicate that the fire might have started in the central air-conditioner room which is located on the first floor of the building.

The company has said that it is still evaluating its losses from the incident. While Unimicron has not revealed many details yet, it is being said in the market that the fire could disrupt the company’s supply chain.

Unimicron Technology is also a supplier for Apple and is reportedly one of the major suppliers for the substrate-like PCB for iPhone 12 models. Currently, it is not known how if this fire will affect supply for the iPhone, for which Apple is reportedly increasing production because of market demand.

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Foxconn denies reports about factory cancelling holidays and running 24×7 for iPhone productions

Jeet — Wed, 30 Sep 2020 05:39:54 +0000

Apple has postponed the iPhone 12 launch event this year, which is said to be the result of production issues because of the COVID-19 pandemic. To meet the deadline, it was recently reported that Foxconn is running the operation 24 hours a day and has canceled workers’ holidays.

Not just that, it is also being reported that the company has introduced mandatory overtime with bonuses for longer-serving staff. However, the company has now responded and said that the news is fake and no such action has been taken.

Even though companies are trying to shift the majority of the production outside of China, they are still dependent on China when it comes to supply chain and production, which remains central to the country dispute anti-China sentiments because of its failure in containing the COVID-19 pandemic.

China was the first country to hit by COVID-19 but it managed to quickly recover, especially on the production side. With operations resumed, it will now play a major role in production and manufacturing globally.

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The report from SCMP cited the company’s employee Wang Guofeng who claimed that overtime work had increased since summer and most workers were allowed to take only four days off per month. Another employee added that the company production lines are running 24 hours a day with the introduction of new night shifts.

The same report also claims that employees have been asked to cancel their upcoming holidays around the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day to ensure timely delivery of the new iPhone 12 models.

While Apple has not yet confirmed the launch date for the upcoming smartphones, reports indicate that the company will announce four models — iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Mini, iPhone 12 Pro, and iPhone 12 Pro Max on 13th October.

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Samsung opens world’s largest smartphone factory in India to boost production

Jeet — Mon, 09 Jul 2018 06:44:09 +0000

Samsung, the world’s leading smartphone manufacturer, has opened a new factory in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India, which is touted as the world’s largest mobile factory. It will be officially inaugrated today by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South Korean President Moon.

The factory, located in Sector 81 in Noida, now has a double production capacity of 120 million mobile devices a month. This comes at a time when smartphone users in the country are about to touch the 340 million mark by the end of this year.

The company is aiming to increase the overall production capacity by 50 percent, which is currently at 10 percent. Last year, in June 2017, the South Korean giant had announced Rs 4,915 crore investment to expand the new Noida plant. In just about an year of the announcement, Samsung’s Noida plant is all-ready to double production.

Samsung is not only aiming to double its mobile phone production but other consumer electronics products as well, such as refrigerators and flat panel televisions. In 2007, the existing Noida plant started manufacturing mobile phones.

A company official said that “the new unit has come up on an additional 35 acres adjacent to the current facility. It will double the production capacity of both mobile phones and refrigerators. The components will be assembled in Noida facility. There will be some labour-intensive functions, which will generate a number of jobs. Besides, the unit will also give rise to ancillary companies in the city.”

In the year 2012, Samsung became the leader in mobile phones in India. Today, Samsung is among the top mobile brands in India and with the new Noida plant Samsung is expecting to expand its mobile business in India.

Besides the factory in Noida, Samsung also has a production unit in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, as well as five Research & Development centres and one design centre in Noida, employing over 70,000 people.

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