OSAKA, Oct. 7 (Kyodo) — Panasonic Corp. said Friday that it will triple its output capacity for factory automation machinery in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, by replacing its manufacturing plant with a new facility around April next year.
The new plant is expected to focus on the production of automation systems that mount electronics parts on substrates with a view to tapping an anticipated growth in demand from local tablet computer and smartphone makers seeking to curb rising labor costs in China. Investment, though not disclosed, is expected to total around 2 billion yen.
The existing plant will be closed when the new one begins operations.
The new production facility will also be staffed with engineers to tailor products to customers' needs and provide maintenance and other after-purchase servicing, the company said.