US computer giant Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) plans to build a new hardware factory in SÄ‚Åo Paulo state by year-end, the Brazilian unit said in a press release.
Dell will undertake manufacturing at the technology park in Hortolândia, a press officer told BNamericas. The aim is to meet the growth of Dell's operation in Brazil, which reached 74% in the first quarter, she added.
"The SÄ‚Åo Paulo plant will help [us] to be faster and reduce costs, as well as time to market," Fernando Loureiro, Dell's corporate affairs director told BNamericas. "Seventeen percent of our customers are in the south-east area surrounding SÄ‚Åo Paulo and most of our suppliers are there as well."
The new factory will help the supply of components and products to key customers, as well as importing and exporting, by being close to major transport hubs.
Dell, which already has a plant near Brazil's southern city of Porto Alegre, will continue to produce hardware and extend its global development center, where the company will continue to employ 700 people, according to the press officer.
"We will continue to run and expand the call centers in Rio Grande de Sul. There will be no layoffs," Loureiro said.
Dell's current factory in the south of Brazil opened in November 1999, with an investment of US$130mn, and with the aid of support benefits equivalent to 20mn reais (US$9mn), local newspapers reported recently.
The company, which also has its head office in Rio Grande do Sul, would not divulge details about the investment, size or capacity of the new SÄ‚Åo Paulo factory.
Dell is primarily targeting Brazil's corporate market, but also aims to boost its coverage in the small medium-sized business segment.
