Samsung Electronics South Africa says it will manufacture all locally sold computer monitors at a plant in Gauteng

BY ROY DOWNING

SAMSUNG Electronics South Africa is to manufacture all its computer monitors sold locally in one of its assembly plants in Gauteng.

The company said manufacturing the monitors at its plant in Edenvale would give it more control over pricing and quality. It would also contribute to job creation and skills development, as 50 people had already been employed specifically to produce monitors at the plant.

"Samsung is committed to delivering innovative, smart products to our customer base, and certainly we understand that cost is a consideration, especially when examining the latest range of monitors," said Thierry Boulanger, IT director at Samsung Electronics SA.

He added: "While monitors and TVs are the only products planned for local assembly at this stage, we are certainly proud to be able to invest further in the local market and contribute to further employment opportunities and developing this country."

Mr Boulanger said the success of Samsung’s local television business was due to the local manufacturing model.

"We are so confident with the local assembly of our monitors that they all include a three-year warranty," he said. "We believe a local model will enable us to grow this part of the business even further. Currently we are the leading brand in the monitor retail market and, of course, we are optimistic about market growth during 2012." - Businessday