Motorola announced it will be the first mobile phone manufacturer to assemble smartphone devices in the United States. Specifically, it will manufacture a portfolio of products starting with a new product line labeled Moto X.
Manufacturing will take place at a leased 481,000 square foot facility, a facility that was originally built by Nokia, just outside Fort Worth, Texas. The company said it will be hiring 2,000 people to work at this facility.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry issued the following statement on Motorola Mobility's announcement that it will create 2,000 jobs at its new Texas manufacturing facility, which, as stated abouve will produce the first smartphone that is designed, engineered and assembled in the U.S.:
"Motorola Mobility's decision to manufacture its new smartphone and create thousands of new jobs in Texas is great news for our growing state. Our strong, healthy economy, built on a foundation of low taxes, smart regulation, fair legal system and a skilled workforce is attracting companies from across the country and around the world that want to be a part of the rising Texas success story."
From the Motorola Mobility Website:
Moto X: The First Smartphone Assembled in the USA
There are more than 130 million smartphones in use in the USA today and not one of them was assembled here...until now.
May 28, 2013 Danielle McNally
Today at the AllThingsD conference Dennis Woodside revealed how we are reinventing Motorola through a portfolio of products starting with Moto X, a new flagship smartphone that will be designed, engineered and assembled in the USA. We’re not talking about just a handful of units either -- available this summer, every Moto X sold in the USA will be assembled in Fort Worth, Texas, making it the first smartphone ever assembled domestically.
There were a few reasons why we decided to do this. There are several business advantages to having our Illinois and California-based designers and engineers much closer to our factory. For instance, we’ll be able to iterate on design much faster, create a leaner supply chain, respond much more quickly to purchasing trends and demands, and deliver devices to people here much more quickly. And as a part of Google we’re being encouraged to take big bets on things that make a difference.
We still have a network of global operations, and that won’t change. Our global manufacturing partner remains Flextronics and we’ll continue to assemble devices locally in China and Brazil. But Flextronics is busy looking for people for the new Fort Worth facility now. If you’re interested, we encourage you to check the available positions and apply by searching for jobs in Fort Worth, TX.
This is an incredibly exciting time to be in the mobile device industry. Our role in inventing the mobile phone is well known. We’re happy to be shaping its future as well.