Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

According to Apple's latest list of suppliers, Apple's manufacturing operations in the United States doubled between 2020 and 2021, but most of them were small-scale pilot production for testing purposes.

It is reported that the number of factories with Apple suppliers in the United States has increased from 25 to 48 in a year. As of September 2021, 48 of Apple's more than 180 suppliers had factories in the United States, up from 25 a year ago, according to a list of suppliers released by Apple. California has more than 30 factories, up from less than 10 a year ago.

Most of Apple's products are manufactured and assembled in Chinese factories, and the only product it assembles in the United States is the Mac Pro. Apple stressed that Mac Pro uses components from 12 suppliers in eight states across the United States.

Apple's latest supplier list shows that many of its major suppliers, including chip makers Qualcomm and TSMC, product assembler Foxconn and image sensor supplier Sony, opened factories in the US last year.

It should be emphasized that small-scale trial production is also covered by Apple's so-called "manufacturing business". Although Apple is tight-lipped about the specific process of making products, most U. S. factories are likely to complete small-scale trial production. There are mainly the following stages:

Prototype manufacturing stage prototype is an early model used to test different aspects of new products, which is usually divided into design prototypes and functional prototypes.

A design prototype is a non-functional model that mainly helps product developers understand the look and feel of a particular design. The functional prototype is mainly used to realize the technical functions of the product, but the appearance may be completely different from that of the final product.

Apple mainly makes prototypes in its own design studio, including computer-controlled aluminum alloy milling and 3D printing.

Engineering Verification Test (EVT) during the engineering verification test phase, Apple combines design and functional prototypes to produce devices that use expected materials that look and work in much the same way as the final product.

The purpose of engineering verification testing is to ensure that it is feasible to produce products in the expected form and to address possible production challenges.

Apple typically produces 1 to 1000 devices during engineering verification tests, some of which are likely to be made in American factories.

Design Verification Test (DVT) the products produced in the design verification test phase use precise processes on the final production line, and each type of machine is involved. Apple typically produces thousands of products during the design verification test phase, which may be done jointly by Chinese and American factories.

Production verification testing (PVT) is the final testing phase and is carried out on the actual production line to ensure that the product quality, output, time and cost are in line with expectations. Apple's production verification tests are carried out in product manufacturing plants.

Normally, Apple sends its own engineers to supervise the trial production of the product. In the last two years, Apple has developed new remote workflows, using technologies, including live streaming, to help employees at Apple headquarters track production at product factories remotely, according to people familiar with the matter. It is reported that Apple will use iPad to communicate and use augmented reality tools to help technical experts at the company's headquarters check for problems in factory production. Factory managers will be given more decision-making power, but the final decision rests with Apple headquarters.

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