Nokia To Shift Mobile Phone Manufacturing From U.S. To Factories Abroad.

Nokia announced it is making significant changes in its manufacturing operations at its North Texas factories to maintain its advantage in the highly competitive mobile phone industry.

The world’s largest mobile phone supplier will shift some of its mobile phone manufacturing from its U.S-based factories in Texas to its facilities in Korea and Mexico. As a result of this change, Nokia’s employment in North Texas will decrease by approximately 800 full-time employees at its two Texas-based manufacturing facilities over the next five months.

During the past year, Nokia has increased production of mobile phones substantially in response to strong demand for its products. However, the majority of increased manufacturing for the Americas region has taken place at its factories in Mexico, Brazil and Korea.

“We continue to grow faster than the market,” K-P Wilska, president, Nokia (Americas), said. “In recent months we have increased the capacity of our factories by installing newer machinery and improving our manufacturing processes. This means we can achieve higher volumes than before, with less labor. In the future, as we begin to make new products that were designed for manufacturability as well as performance, we will have even more capacity. Because of this, we are taking actions designed to increase our market and cost leadership.”

Manufacturing will be shifted to Korea and Mexico from the Diplomacy Road/Centreport factory in Ft. Worth and will be subleased. The Alliance factory will be focused on more engineering support for the Americas and fulfillment for the U.S. market, but will continue manufacturing mobile phones. In addition, Nokia plans to consolidate all of its Ft. Worth-based operation at the Alliance facility.

“We are firmly committed to building on our market-leading position as our products and our business evolve. Likewise, we remain firmly committed to our Alliance facility and to the City of Ft. Worth, and we intend to be here for many years to come,” Wilska said.

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