The Korea Herald reports that Apple has spent “tens of millions of dollars” to buy production equipment to avoid delays in circuit boards for the upcoming “iPhone 8.”
The equipment produces the rigid flexible printed circuit board or RFPCB that connects the phone’s chips to other components of the device. The Cupertino, California-based company doesn’t have a production facility, but sources tell The Korea Herald that the tech giant will lease the machines to suppliers to speed up the process.
Apple did have three RFPCB suppliers lined up to provide the 100 million units the company will need this year, but one allegedly dropped out. The exact reason why the Taiwanese supplier withdrew from the deal with a big client Apple isn’t know, but sources tell The Korea Herald that the firm may have felt a pinch on the tricky production and strict quality requirements along with low profitability.
