Foxconn works out expansion plans as the demand for ‘Made in America’ products rises

What’s common between the devices from Apple and HP ? Yes! It’s the ‘Made in China’ tag. Well, that might be changing soon as the Chinese manufacturer Foxconn, which is a major supplier to Apple, HP and other big companies might soon expand it’s manufacturing arm in North America after increasing demands from clients for ‘Made in America’ products.

Recently, Apple CEO, Tim Cook had announced that by next year, company will shift the production of Mac to the United States and is planning to invest $100 million for the same.

Foxconn is a major Chinese manufacturer and produces a majority of electronic devices sold all around the world. It’s clients include some of the biggest Electronic companies like Apple, Samsung, Microsoft, HP, etc. The company was also at the center of controversy recently, during the launch of the iPhone 5 as various reports bashed the company for it’s harsh working conditions and labor violations.

The expansion in the United States might just prove to be quite a costly affair for Foxconn as the company would have to spend quite some money to hire workers in the US as opposed to cheap labor that the company enjoys in China. Seeing the company’s  reputation, it’ll surely have a tough time in the US, where it’ll have to adhere by the strict labor laws applicable in the country.

In an interview to Bloomberg, Louis Woo, a spokesman for Foxconn said,

"We are looking at doing more manufacturing in the U.S. because, in general, customers want more to be done there.

Supply chain is one of the big challenges for U.S. expansion. In addition, any manufacturing we take back to the U.S. needs to leverage high-value engineering talent there in comparison to the low-cost labor of China."

That being said, the move might not be all-negative for the Chinese manufacturer as manufacturing in the US would mean a cut down on the shipping time as well as costs. Foxconn has a global workforce of around 1.6 million and makes some of the most popular devices like the iPhone, iPad and the Sony Play Station.