Fabrinet Acquiring JDS China Operations

SAN FRANCISCO, April 28 -- Fabrinet, an engineering and electromechanical manufacturing services company, announced yesterday it will buy JDS Uniphase's manufacturing facilities in Fuzhou, China. Under the terms of the arrangement, Fabrinet will acquire all assets and operations related to the Fuzhou plant, including R&D and the manufacture of products such as crystals and precision optics. The transfer is expected to be completed before June 30, subject to customary conditions. Terms of the agreement were not revealed.

JDS Uniphase announced earlier this month that it would divest its Clearwater, Fla., and Ewing and Mountain Lakes, N.J., manufacturing sites as part of its cost-cutting initiatives. JDS also has a facility in Shenzhen, China. (See Photonics.com, "JDS Uniphase to Cut 850 Jobs")

Fabrinet has been providing manufacturing services to JDS Uniphase since 2000. In December 2004, the company acquired JDS Uniphase manufacturing facilities in Singapore and in Bintan, Indonesia.

The 225,000-square-foot Fuzhou plant employs more than 500 engineers, technicians and skilled operators, all of whom are expected to transfer to Fabrinet and continue their employment at the site, Fabrinet said. It said it will use existing management and technical expertise at the site to grow its optical component business in China and in other regions it serves.

"Transferring ownership of our facility and operations in Fuzhou, China to our contract manufacturing partner, Fabrinet, is part of our ongoing strategy to decrease cost structure for profitability while streamlining our portfolio along strategic core product lines to increase our corporate agility," said Minoo Zohouri, vice president of global materials for JDS Uniphase.

"It is a natural evolution for Fabrinet to acquire the JDS Uniphase operation in Fuzhou," said Tom Mitchell, founder and CEO of Fabrinet. "We have been manufacturing precision optical components since our inception and have had a long, successful relationship with JDS Uniphase. Expanding our Asian operations to China, and growing our optical component manufacturing operations in that market, will enable Fabrinet to provide greater flexibility and support to our existing customers and additional resources to attract new customers."

For more information, visit: www.fabrinet.com