by Anton Shilov
11/13/2012 | 10:11 PM
Toshiba Corp. earlier this month resumed manufacturing at the Toshiba Semiconductor Thailand Co. (TST) facility in Pathumthani, Thailand, in order to meet healthy demand for discrete products for smartphones and tablets. Production will continue until TST opens its new facility in Purachinburi.
TST's facility in the Bangkadi Industrial Park, Pathunthani, was completely inundated in last year's floods, forcing suspension of operations. Assembly and packaging of the small signal devices and photocouplers the facility handled was transferred to other Toshiba facilities in Japan and Malaysia, and also outsourced as a means to respond to changes in demand. In April this year, TST decided to relocate its operations to the 304 Industrial Park in Purachinburi, which is outside of Thailand's major flood plain, leaving the now cleaned up Bangkadi facility vacant and available.
Toshiba has installed highly efficient packaging equipment at TST Bangkadi. Its cost is covered by flood insurance and will not impact on Toshiba's bottom line, and the equipment will be transferred to the 304 facility following the start of operation there in spring 2013. Resumption of production at the older facility positions Toshiba to respond for growing demand for discrete devices, a product area where the company is a world leader, especially demand for smart phones and tablet PCs.
Toshiba group is optimizing the logistics and production of the back-end processes – assembly and packaging – of its discrete devices business by promoting overseas deployment, a move that is expected to boost the long-term vitality and earning power of the business.