One of the more interesting items announced late at CES 2024 last week was Orbic Electronics Manufacturing LLC planning to move its manufacturing operation from China to the U.S., reshoring about 1,000 skilled jobs.
Called Project Patriot, the reshoring effort is part of a strategic move to return manufacturing of connected devices to the U.S. Orbic develops devices for smartphones, tablets and mobile hotspots that are available from U.S. telecom Verizon.
Orbic’s plan and the “Made in America” initiative are part of the U.S. government’s longer strategy to return domestic manufacturing and reduce reliability on offshore workforce and manufacturing.
As part of the move back to the U.S., Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency (SCIDA) has preliminarily approved the plan to assist Orbic in the transition from moving operations from China to Hauppauge, New York.
With the support from SCIDA, the move will bring a $30.8 million investment into Suffolk County, New York, and more than 500 jobs. Orbic will lease and renovate an existing 70,000 sq-ft building that will include the addition of edge manufacturing technology.
This technology will achieve a mass production target of 5 million units per year, Orbic said. Once completed, the venture will offer more than 1,000 people jobs in the next five years.
“Having our products read 'Made in America' is a tremendous point of pride for us, and it will also allow our company to bolster the local economy, helping other vendors in Suffolk County succeed alongside us,” said Mike Narula, president and CEO of Orbic Electronics.
