The Japanese electronics group NEC is building a new factory in Pathum Thani to consolidate operations from two nearby plants, aiming to double sales of telephone exchanges and automotive electronics made in Thailand to 40 billion yen (12.4 billion baht) by 2020.
The company expects to spend several billion yen for the new factory. It will expand production of automotive products, hoping to capture growing demand as more vehicle systems become electronic, the Nikkei Asian Review reported.
Subsidiary NEC Platforms will be responsible for constructing the three-storey facility at the Nava Nakorn industrial estate, the paper rpeorted.
The 24,000-square-metre plant is scheduled for completion by the end of May, and the company will bring in equipment from the existing factories in the same industrial park. Operations will begin in November.
Thailand is NEC Platforms' sole Southeast Asia production base. In the past it produced mainly telephone exchanges, but has been shifting to automotive components such as electric control units. The Thai plant will feature "internet of things" technology, which connects various systems online, to increase efficiency.
Of the two existing factories, one will shut down, while the other will be converted into an office building, NEC said. Altogether, the new facilities will be roughly 40% larger than the total current space, when including the office building.
The two current plants, built roughly 30 years ago, are showing their age and also required significant repairs after the great flood of 2011.