The Charlotte Region’s General Microcircuits, Inc. Becomes First Clean Technology Manufacturing Company in Costa Rica
- Company´s new operations create opportunities for growth
- Initial investment exceeds US$2 million
Alajuela, Costa Rica – August 3, 2011: Manufacturing advanced electronic circuit board assemblies takes center stage today as US-based General Microcircuits, Inc., [GMI] officially opens its San Jose facility. Considered the first Clean Technology Manufacturing Company in Costa Rica, this new plant will initially employ approximately twenty Costa Ricans and measures approximately 1,300 m2 (13,993 sq. ft). The facility is located in the Free Trade Zone BES in Alajuela, with start-up phase cost exceeding US$2 million.
Since the company first announced its decision to set up operations in the country last December, it has spent the last eight months up-fitting its plant. In May, the first products rolled off the production line. Since then, weekly shipments have been sent to GMI’s Mooresville, NC USA facility for validation and distribution. When fully operational the Alajuela facility will produce more than 100,000 assemblies per month.
According to Costa Rica’s Vice President Luis Liberman, the electronic assemblies that the company manufactures play a vital role in the wind turbine industry. This is precisely one of the areas defined, less than a year ago, as priority in the country´s foreign direct investment attraction strategy.
“Certainly, for a nation such as Costa Rica, catalogued as one of the world leaders in environmental protection, foreign direct investment specialized in the production of clean technology equipment and components is a consequence of the world renowned respect that the country has for sustainable development” added Liberman.
General Microcircuits has built its success on strategic and balanced growth. According to Dave Dalton, Senior Vice President of the company, “We believe as we grow our facility in Costa Rica, we will continue to expand our operation in North Carolina. The model is set. In 2003 we successfully transferred some manufacturing with high volume and stability to Asian facilities. This improved our price competitiveness and attracted new business.”
After its move to manufacture some parts outside the US, General Microcircuits was able to expand employment in its North Carolina facility. GMI added jobs in materials controls, program management, logistics and engineering.
Since 2005, GMI has seen an increased demand in green and energy efficiency products. Currently, 50% of its customers are within this sector and 65% of its revenues are generated in this sector.
The company is increasingly a player in assembling environmentally-friendly LED lighting and Smart Grid products. “LED lighting offers the world a cleaner, brighter more efficient light lasting for a longer life than its predecessors. LED lighting production takes precision and skill. The delicate LEDs must be applied to the electronic circuit without compromising the LED’s lens,” said Dave Dalton. He says special care starts with the tight controls of the manufacturing process, a particularly strong trait of GMI.
Smart Grid devices are becoming more prevalent in today’s society. Dalton adds, “Smart Grid technology and demand are evolving faster than most other technologies. GMI has demonstrated the ability to help their clients launch these new products to the market and make quick adjustments when necessary.”
Staton Williams, General Manager of GMI Costa Rica said, “We are pleased to be new members of the Costa Rica business community.” We are impressed with the work ethic and skill level of the associates in our operation. Also, throughout the process of searching for a site, building and staffing our plant, at every turn our requests for assistance have been met with an abundance of genuine support from suppliers, neighbors, government agencies and our employees."
- Company´s new operations create opportunities for growth
- Initial investment exceeds US$2 million
Alajuela, Costa Rica – August 3, 2011: Manufacturing advanced electronic circuit board assemblies takes center stage today as US-based General Microcircuits, Inc., [GMI] officially opens its San Jose facility. Considered the first Clean Technology Manufacturing Company in Costa Rica, this new plant will initially employ approximately twenty Costa Ricans and measures approximately 1,300 m2 (13,993 sq. ft). The facility is located in the Free Trade Zone BES in Alajuela, with start-up phase cost exceeding US$2 million.
Since the company first announced its decision to set up operations in the country last December, it has spent the last eight months up-fitting its plant. In May, the first products rolled off the production line. Since then, weekly shipments have been sent to GMI’s Mooresville, NC USA facility for validation and distribution. When fully operational the Alajuela facility will produce more than 100,000 assemblies per month.
According to Costa Rica’s Vice President Luis Liberman, the electronic assemblies that the company manufactures play a vital role in the wind turbine industry. This is precisely one of the areas defined, less than a year ago, as priority in the country´s foreign direct investment attraction strategy.
“Certainly, for a nation such as Costa Rica, catalogued as one of the world leaders in environmental protection, foreign direct investment specialized in the production of clean technology equipment and components is a consequence of the world renowned respect that the country has for sustainable development” added Liberman.
General Microcircuits has built its success on strategic and balanced growth. According to Dave Dalton, Senior Vice President of the company, “We believe as we grow our facility in Costa Rica, we will continue to expand our operation in North Carolina. The model is set. In 2003 we successfully transferred some manufacturing with high volume and stability to Asian facilities. This improved our price competitiveness and attracted new business.”
After its move to manufacture some parts outside the US, General Microcircuits was able to expand employment in its North Carolina facility. GMI added jobs in materials controls, program management, logistics and engineering.
Since 2005, GMI has seen an increased demand in green and energy efficiency products. Currently, 50% of its customers are within this sector and 65% of its revenues are generated in this sector.
The company is increasingly a player in assembling environmentally-friendly LED lighting and Smart Grid products. “LED lighting offers the world a cleaner, brighter more efficient light lasting for a longer life than its predecessors. LED lighting production takes precision and skill. The delicate LEDs must be applied to the electronic circuit without compromising the LED’s lens,” said Dave Dalton. He says special care starts with the tight controls of the manufacturing process, a particularly strong trait of GMI.
Smart Grid devices are becoming more prevalent in today’s society. Dalton adds, “Smart Grid technology and demand are evolving faster than most other technologies. GMI has demonstrated the ability to help their clients launch these new products to the market and make quick adjustments when necessary.”
Staton Williams, General Manager of GMI Costa Rica said, “We are pleased to be new members of the Costa Rica business community.” We are impressed with the work ethic and skill level of the associates in our operation. Also, throughout the process of searching for a site, building and staffing our plant, at every turn our requests for assistance have been met with an abundance of genuine support from suppliers, neighbors, government agencies and our employees."
Foreign Trade Minister, Anabel González explained that the production of clean technology components, such as the ones being produced by GMI, will certainly become part of the manufactured products value chain, one in which Costa Rica has successfully incorporated.
“Furthermore, the news of GMI´s arrival has been well received by other multinational companies in the Life Sciences and Advanced Manufacturing sectors in Costa Rica. They understand the potential this company has to eventually become a component supplier for their own products” said the Minister.
Said GMI's Staton, “Our company likes Costa Rica because we all think alike. We all understand the value of doing high quality work with high quality people. That is the foundation for success.” Staton pointed out the 95% literacy rate among Costa Ricans as one of the first traits that attracted the company to the country.
Dave Dalton pointed out that Costa Rica´s proximity to the US East Coast helped make the country a logical place for manufacturing. “Many of our customers who need to be on-site for important manufacturing activities can take direct flights to San Jose. Also, shipments from Costa Rica to the US can be delivered by sea inside seven days, a fraction of the time that Asian plants need to ship by sea to the eastern and central US.”
“The pro-business environment supported by Procomer and Cinde makes the location enticing for industry. “These organizations understand how business operates and they provided important services to GMI as we began our operation” “It is unimaginable to us that we can be operating in a new country inside of two years; CINDE and Procomer led us, encouraged us and connected us to Costa Rica; we are gratefully indebted.” said Dalton.
About GMI:
General Microcircuits is a global electronics manufacturing company providing electronic circuit board and integrated assemblies to manufacturers in diverse industries and applications. The focus is to design and manufacture electronic products for greater reliability, manufacturability, testability, and lower cost. GMI provides domestic and offshore manufacturing capabilities to meet its customers’ needs and volumes.
Founded in 1980 and located 20 miles north of Charlotte, North Carolina, General Microcircuits serves customers in all segments of the energy, industrial, commercial, telecommunications, medical, defense and evolving market-sectors.
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