Advertisement
Advertisement
Foxconn
Get more with myNEWS
A personalised news feed of stories that matter to you
Learn more
Operations of the various assembly lines run by Foxconn Technology Group in the central Chinese city of Zhengzhou have been unaffected by the latest Covid-19 outbreak in Henan province. Photo: Shutterstock

World’s largest iPhone factory maintains production schedule amid latest Covid-19 outbreak in central China

  • Operations at Foxconn’s smartphone and components manufacturing complex in Zhengzhou have been unaffected by the latest Covid-19 outbreak in Henan province
  • These operations, which employ more than 300,000 workers, are responsible for Zhengzhou producing about half of the world’s iPhones
Foxconn
The world’s largest iPhone factory, operated by Foxconn Technology Group in the central Chinese city of Zhengzhou, has kept up with its production schedule, despite a jump in new Covid-19 cases across the landlocked province of Henan where the plant is located.
Operations of the various assembly lines run by Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, have been unaffected by the recent outbreak, according to two company employees who spoke on condition of anonymity. They confirmed a report on Tuesday by Chinese media Yicai, citing a Foxconn representative, that the pandemic “hasn’t affected production capacity so far”.
The Taiwanese firm’s workers in the city, along with local residents, have all been subjected to coronavirus nucleic acid tests, as Henan became the first mainland Chinese province to combat both the Omicron and Delta coronavirus variants at the same time.
Foxconn, the world’s biggest electronics contract manufacturer and Apple’s prime iPhone supplier, did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment on Wednesday.
Foxconn Technology Group’s main iPhone manufacturing facility in China is located inside the Zhengzhou Xinzheng Comprehensive Bonded Zone in the city of Zhengzhou, capital of central Henan province. Photo: SCMP
The latest outbreak marks another local crisis in which Foxconn’s Zhengzhou operations emerged largely unscathed. While workers were initially sent on leave in July last year because of massive flooding in Henan, it was business as usual for Foxconn by August.
Foxconn’s smartphone and components manufacturing operations in the provincial capital – spread across low-risk zones for Covid-19 infection – are located at the Zhengzhou Airport Economy Zone, Zhengzhou Economic and Technological Development Area and Zhongmou County. These operations, which employ more than 300,000 workers, make Zhengzhou responsible for producing about half of the world’s iPhones.
The sixth round of coronavirus nucleic acid tests for Foxconn workers were conducted on Tuesday, according to the latest notice published by the company on its WeChat account. Foxconn provides mandatory tests for its employees. Those who refuse to get tested are prohibited from entering its production areas.

Foxconn has set up more than 100 testing spots spread across its facilities in Zhengzhou, according to a video released by the company on Monday. There were 10 communities located inside three districts in Zhengzhou considered as medium-risk areas as of Wednesday, according to city authorities.

01:35

Door-to-door testing carried out in China’s Henan province as Omicron spreads from Tianjin

Door-to-door testing carried out in China’s Henan province as Omicron spreads from Tianjin

There were 65 new community cases of Covid-19 detected in Anyang, the northernmost city in Henan, on Tuesday.

While it remained unclear whether all the new cases were the result of the Omicron variant, 56 out of 58 new Anyang cases were reported in Tangyin county, where the city identified its first Omicron case.

On Monday, more than 5 million people in the city were banned from leaving their homes unless they were to get a Covid-19 test. Private vehicles were also ordered off the road to curb the spread of this highly transmissible variant.

Post