Speaking before reports of IBM is to sell its PC
business unit to China's Lenovo Group were confirmed Dell founder
and cheif executive said that his company's US facilities give them
an edge against other North American suppliers.
In an industry largely seen to be in the midst of consolidation,
Dell has avoided making acquisitions, largely because the company's
founder views this as a "healthier and more sustainable" way to
grow, he told attendees at the OpenWorld conference.
"When was the last time you saw a successful merger or
acquisition in the computer industry? It hasn't happened, at least
not in a long, long time," Dell said.
Although Dell posted record numbers during its most recent
financial results, the company's two largest
competitors Hewlett-Packard and IBM - have struggled to turn a
profit selling personal computers.
Dell attributed his competitors' problems to outsourcing.
"It's been a long time since our leading competitors actually
made a computer," he said. "They have outsourced manufacturing
computers a long time ago, but Dell continues to invest heavily in
the manufacturing and design of computers."
Last month, Dell announced plans to open a third US
manufacturing facility in North Carolina. The company already has
US manufacturing operations in Austin, Texas, and Lebanon,
Tennessee.
Moving facilities offshore may have seemed appealing during the
industry-wide sales slump of the last few years, but it has left
some companies at a disadvantage as demand picks up again, Dell
said.
Dell has some first-hand experience in the problems that can
accompany offshoring. A year ago the company moved customer support
operations for its Optiplex desktops and Latitude notebooks back to
the US after corporate customers complained about the quality of
service they were receiving from international facilities.
Dell, however, does have a number of manufacturing facilities
located outside the US, including factories in Ireland, Malaysia,
China and Brazil.
Robert McMillan writes for IDG News Service
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