Although Apple will begin American production of one part of the Mac computer lineup next year, it’s unlikely that an American company will be doing the actual production of the machine.
Analyst Amit Daryanani with RBC Capital Markets said it’s unlikely that American companies will handle stateside assembly for Apple. He specifically mentioned Flextronics International Ltd., which was originally founded in Silicon Valley in 1969 but is now headquartered in Singapore, and Jabil Circuit, founded in Detroit, Mich., in 1966 and now headquartered in St. Petersburg, Fla.
While both companies supply components to Apple, Daryanani says he doesn’t see either of them becoming assembly partners on the Mac’s manufacturing return to U.S. soil. In recent year, both Flextronics and Jabil have been moving away from assembly of consumer-centric products, and moving toward a focus of high-mix and low-volume manufacturing sectors, such as healthcare and medical supplies.
A Foxconn official indicated earlier this week that the company is looking into expansion in the United States. A Foxconn spokesperson said a client requested more products be built stateside, declining to name a specific customer.
Foxconn seems like a good fit for Apple’s U.S. manufacturing plans. The company already has a few sites in the states, with locations in Texas, California, and Indiana.
Daryanani says while Apple has a number of suppliers., the company’s assembly work has been largely done by Foxconn, making switching away from the partner difficult.
“They have been an integral part of AAPL’s supply-chain and have managed AAPL’s supply-chain for multiple products, making them better positioned to handle such a transition,” Daryanani wrote.
