Lenovo's First-Ever US Plant Officially Opens For Business

Lenovo has officially opened its first-ever US manufacturing plant today in Whitsett, North Carolina. The 240,000 square-foot facility, in which the manufacturing line was opened up in, previously served as a logistics center, customer solutions center, and national returns center for the company.

It was tipped back in October last year that Lenovo would be opening up its first US-based manufacturing line, and North Carolina is the perfect spot for the facility, as Lenovo's US headquarters is in nearby Raleigh. Lenovo will use the new manufacturing line to build mostly Think-branded devices, such as the ThinkCentre M92p desktop, ThinkPad Tablet 2, and ThinkPad Helix convertible Ultrabook.

The new manufacturing line created 115 new jobs, which isn't a whole lot, but we're sure folks in North Carolina are roaring with excitement, and it's simply a baby step to creating more jobs in the States. The plant actually began operations in January, but just recently had the opening ceremony with the cutting of the red ribbon.

It's rare for tech companies to set up shop in the US, but the popularity of the idea has gained a lot of steam recently. Apple will be building some of their Mac products in Texas, while it's reported that Google will be assembling Google Glass here in the US as well. The search giant isn't a stranger to building in the US either — the now-deceased Nexus Q was partially US built.

Of course, though, don't expect Lenovo to start moving all their business to the US. A majority of their products will still be made in China and Mexico. This new limited-capacity US plant will only allow Lenovo more flexibility to cater to its corporate clients mostly. However, we're guessing that the "made in the USA" moniker will certainly boost Lenovo's reputation and make them a more favorable company than before.

SOURCE: Lenovo