Come to think of it, metal housings ARE sort of important on your Mac notebook…
According to the Financial Times, a Chinese factory responsible for manufacturing the metal housings for Apple’s uni-body laptop lineup has been shutdown due to “strange odors” emanating from the plant, potentially causing a 40% decrease in shipments for November.
Catcher Technology, a Taiwanese company with factories in Eastern China, was ordered on Sunday to shutdown a factory that produces 60% of Apple’s uni-body enclosures for the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air lines. The plant also produces casings for Apple’s iMac and products for other notebook makers such as Acer, Dell, Lenovo and Sony.
The president of Catcher Technology, Allen Horng, reported that total shipments would fall 20% in October, adding that November could see a 40% drop if the local government doesn’t clear the plant for operation by the end of the month.
“Shipments to our customers will inevitably be affected,” Horng said in a press conference Monday. “We already asked them to make adjustments to their (casings) procurement.”
It is unclear whether the plant shutdown will affect shipments of a rumored MacBook Pro refresh, expected to be announced later this month. Notebooks accounted for a majority of Apple’s Mac sales in the quarter ending in June.
Analysts expect another record breaking quarter, bolstered by strengthened MacBook Air sales, when the company announces its quarterly earnings on Tuesday.
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.
One reply on ““Strange odor” at manufacturing plant could lead to reduced Mac notebook shipments in November”
Hi Chris – I work for a flange manufacturer here in Houston, Texas. I’m always trying to keep up with what’s happening in the manufacturing industry at large. It’ll be interesting to see how events like this one will factor into the argument for bringing manufacturing processes back to the US.
Anyways, thanks for sharing! – Aly