Apple Inc. is opening a new plant in Mesa, Arizona and is offering 2,000 jobs to people that can make parts for its products.
As part of its strategies to increase manufacturing in the United States, the Cupertino-based company has chosen Ariz. as its manufacturing plant with 2,000 job vacancies.
Kristin Huguet, spokesperson for Apple told Bloomberg, "We are proud to expand our domestic manufacturing initiative with a new facility in Arizona, creating more than 2,000 jobs in engineering, manufacturing and construction." She added, "This new plant will make components for Apple products and it will run on 100 percent renewable energy from day one."
GT Advanced Technologies, Inc. (GTAT) said in a statement Monday that the top smartphone company struck a deal with them to provide equipment for the facility – machines made of sapphire, which is preferable used in covering camera lenses and home buttons.
As per a report from the market research firm HIS last month, since Apple started using sapphire as a cover for camera in 2012, the demand for sapphire increased.
"Sapphire substrates are suitable for covering lenses, buttons and displays because they are transparent, yet more scratch-resistant than glass," IHS told Bloomberg. "Glass can become scratched from contact with hard objects, which can degrade the performance of a camera lens or a fingerprint recognition window."
The Merrimack, New Hampshire-based company agreed a multiyear deal with Apple to provide kiln used to create sapphire material and under in the terms of the deal, Apple will have exclusivity rights from the technology company.
Apple prepaid GT Advanced $578 million, which is, as revealed by GT Advanced, reimbursable over five years starting in 2015.
Tom Gutierrez, GT Advanced's CEO, said in a statement released with the company's third-quarter financial results, "We are very excited about this agreement with Apple as it represents a significant milestone in GT's long term diversification strategy."
