Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Dallas, TX- Marlow Industries, Inc today announced the phase three expansion of the Bridgman Element production process to their Vietnam facility complete. This is the third phase in a five year initiative to launch a new manufacturing facility in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. During phase three, Marlow qualified the Vietnam plant for total integration of the Bridgman Element manufacturing process. Introduction of the Vietnam manufacturing site expands Marlow’s current offerings through significant cost-savings and the reduction of customer lead times. The changes allow Marlow to penetrate new markets previously unavailable due to the high cost, high quality nature of Marlow’s products. “Now customers can take advantage of Marlow’s superior quality product at all industry competitive rates. The new factory will also narrow the time zone gap and provide for close interaction with our customers who manufacture overseas,” said Barry Nickerson, general manager of Marlow Industries. Marlow began its manufacturing operation in Vietnam in 2005, and initially set-up thermoelectric module assembly lines for the industrial, medical, telecom and consumer modules and systems. Marlow then trained the Vietnam staff to manage half of the front-end process. With phase three, Marlow qualified the Vietnam operation to complete the Bridgman Element manufacturing processes. The plant serves the community in Vietnam by creating new jobs and providing competitive salaries for employees. The facility also provides exposure to new technology, environmental aspects of manufacturing and quality systems. Will the emphasis in Vietnam mean the loss of American jobs? Cetin Toy, manager of front end manufacturing, comments: “We do not foresee any loss of American jobs due to Marlow’s overseas manufacturing—in fact, we anticipate growth in both locations.” Future plans for the Vietnam plant include the transfer of ceramic processing, new market assembly lines, and an engineering design center. The Marlow Industries headquarters in Dallas, TX will be a center of technical excellence, the manufacturing hub for the defense market, and a site for prototyping. Marlow Industries will continue to expand to meet the needs of a growing, international market for thermoelectric technology. The Vietnam factory enables Marlow to more effectively meet the quality, price and performance needs for clients in all industries. Marlow Industries, a subsidiary of II-VI Inc, develops and manufactures thermoelectric coolers (TECs) and subsystems for the aerospace, defense, medical, commercial, industrial and telecommunications markets. Marlow is Telcordia/ISO 9001:2000 compliant and a Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award winning company.