Jabil Technology Services Expands Auburn Hills Design Center

    ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.--April 11, 2001--Jabil Circuit, Inc. today announced the establishment of a new expanded Design Center located in Jabil's Auburn Hills, Michigan manufacturing facility. The center will support Jabil Technology Services (JTS) and includes a design laboratory and a specialized vehicle laboratory.
    "We are very excited about the growth potential that we see on the horizon, because as businesses try to reduce internal costs and resources, the need for outside product design support increases," said Joel Haselhuhn, Jabil's Design Services Manager in Auburn Hills.
    "Michigan's ten years of design experience has provided us with a strong foundation in a broad range of products, including automotive controls and products, computer systems, peripherals, information technology equipment and appliance controls. This experience lends itself to applications we are seeing emerge in the industry today." Haselhuhn cites the integration of consumer-type products into vehicles with the development of in-vehicle driver information systems; personal computers in automobiles and entertainment/multimedia systems as examples of design applications that Jabil will support out of the expanded facility.
    Jabil Design Services, a division of JTS, provides product design and development services, working jointly with Jabil's manufacturing partners and potential partners. Jabil Design Services competencies include: electronic hardware design, software design, simulation and modeling, printed circuit board design and layout and verification and validation testing. The Design Services group works closely with Jabil's manufacturing team, assuring products designed are reliable and cost effective while maintaining increasingly aggressive project schedules.
    The Design Services group provides complete design solutions, design solutions for sub-systems only, or cost-reduced design solutions of existing products. "The Jabil Design Group complements companies that have been manufacturing mechanical systems for years, and find themselves needing to adapt electronics into their systems to keep up with technology. We can assist these companies with electronic engineering resources to provide an advantage over their competition," said Haselhuhn. "The intellectual property policy of Jabil Design Services transfers all created intellectual property back to the customer at the end of a development project, giving the customer complete ownership of the design."
    "The new Design Center in Auburn Hills is more than an expansion of the industry-leading design services provided out of our St. Petersburg headquarters," said Randon Haight, Vice President of Business Unit Development. "We expect that this showcase of engineering talent and experience, together with our well-diversified campus of manufacturing and order fulfillment, will significantly enhance our position of leadership in the region."
    Jabil Circuit, Inc. is an electronic manufacturing services provider for international electronics companies in the communications, personal computer, peripheral, consumer and automotive markets. Jabil offers circuit design, board design from schematic, prototype assembly, volume board assembly, system assembly, repair and warranty services from facilities in North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America. Further information about Jabil can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.jabil.com.