Lenovo European manufacturing move will better serve channel

Lenovo will start manufacturing some of its enterprise hardware in Europe, claiming customers on the continent will benefit from faster delivery times and more configuration options.

The new manufacturing facilities in Hungary will build x86 servers and a range of storage and networking hardware for data centres in partnership with Lenovo’s manufacturing spouse Flex. Production will start in the summer of this year, Lenovo said.

Tangible benefits!

“Transferring production to Europe is a strategic move for us which will create tangible benefits for our customers,” said Wilfredo Sotolongo, EMEA general manager for Lenovo’s data centre group.

“Our customers have been very positive about our decision to manufacture in Hungary. We believe that this will only enhance our capabilities in the enterprise market as we will be able to offer an even greater level of service to our EMEA customers.”

Lenovo added that the decision to move some manufacturing to Europe was borne purely out of the benefits customers in EMEA will get by moving production closer to Lenovo’s “core customer and partner base”.

Manufacturing of data centre hardware in Europe will shave five days off delivery times to customers, along with lowering operation costs through reduced freight costs, the company added.

European customers will still be able to order x86 servers from China, however, leaving the option of much cheaper ocean freight open.

Flex has been a partner to Lenovo for six years, and is already involved in the production of a range of products, including PCs, phones, ThinkServers and tablet repairs. Flex’s Sarvar site in Hungary has just manufactured and shipped its fifth million PC for Lenovo in EMEA, Lenovo claimed today.

“We take great pride in the strategic partnership we have built with Lenovo over the years, producing a wide range of products,” said Janos Lang, Hungary vice president of operations, Flex. “We are thrilled to expand our partnership to include manufacturing Lenovo’s enterprise products in Hungary for its EMEA customers.”