Taiwanese electronics contract manufacturing company Hon Hai Precision Industry Company Ltd., trading as Foxconn Technology Group, is considering setting up a display factory in the U.S.
Foxconn has more than 1.6 million workers globally and also has factories in Texas and California. The company manufactures and assembles products for Apple, Hewlett Packard (HP), Samsung, Microsoft and Dell.
"Automation, software and technology innovation will be our key focus in the U.S. in the coming few years," Chairman Terry Gou told reporters at Foxconn's 40th anniversary gathering on Sunday.
In November 2013, Foxconn announced a plan to invest $40 million in Pennsylvania, $30 million of which will construct the Harrisburg factory. The company did not disclose the specific product the U.S. factory will manufacture but indicated it will likely assemble telecommunications equipment components and Internet servers. Some speculate it will assemble Apple's long-awaited iTV.
The remaining $10 million is meant to be invested in research and development at the Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.
Gou recently said the company is also studying the feasibility of making an advanced tenth generation panel manufacturing plant in the U.S. because it is difficult to ship 60-inch televisions from Asia to the U.S. The new facility will enable the company to build screens larger than 60 inches.
"We will continue to invest in displays as it is an important component for all products including smartphones, tablets and TVs," Gou added.
Previous reports indicated that Apple may be interested in testing the waters of the television industry. Rumors also surfaced that Apple may be interested in buying 55-inch and 65-inch Ultra HD TV panels from LG Display.
Foxconn, the largest assembler of Apple products, including iPhones and iPads, has been expanding at a rapid pace. Forty percent of its revenue is generated by assembling Apple products.
In December, the company entered into a deal with BlackBerry and is on track to acquire land in Indonesia to build a factory devoted to manufacturing BlackBerry handsets.
