Irvine, Calif. – Western Digital has shut down production at
its Thailand factories due to flooding problems in the region dramatically
reducing its hard-disk-drive (HDD) production capability.
The affected factories, located near Bangkok, produced about
32 million hard drives in the quarter ending July 1, Western Digital said. In
addition, many of the hard-drive components are sourced from local suppliers
which are also impacted by the flooding conditions. The company also has factories
located in nearby Malaysia that are not impacted by the flooding.
The Thailand factories produce internal hard drives, but
company officials would not disclose the size or specific types.
The official company line stated the situation will create a
constrained hard-drive supply situation for the current quarter, but a company
spokesman would not go into any detail.
The company said the plants are still operational, but all
work has been suspended to protect its 37,000 area employees and equipment from
the rising water. Western Digital is still assessing the situation as the
situation remains highly volatile and the final impact on production cannot be
determined at this time.
Western Digital will make further announcements during its
Oct. 19 investment conference call.
The flooding, due to seasonal storms, is the worst in 50
years to hit the country and has killed about 280 people in the country,
according to a story in
.
