Hitachi Ends Direct-View Picture Tube Production

Staff -- TWICE, 3/18/2002

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Hitachi recently announced it will stop producing direct-view TV tubes for North America and will phase out manufacturing operations at its CRT plant here, beginning in April.

Instead, the Greenville plant will shift production to projection TV tubes, to meet demand for one of Hitachi's most successful categories. Hitachi America subsidary Hitachi Electronic Devices (USA) manages the facility.

Picture tube production equipment used at the facility will be sold to Thomson Multimedia.

Despite the picture tube plant closing, Hitachi Home Electronics America said it would continue to market direct-view TVs in the United States.

In another announcement, Hitachi said Shigeharu Mano was appointed president/CEO of Hitachi America, succeeding Yoshihiro Koshimizu on April 1. Previously, Mano had been Hitachi America's power and industrial division executive VP.