Executives with Schneider Electric on Nov. 10 said they plan to add three factories to their North American network, one of them in the El Paso market, to help it smooth out supply chain snags.
As part of their plans to expand production of circuit breakers, switchboards, panelboards and switchgear, Schneider leaders say they want to start construction work on their new sites before the end of this year and hire more than 1,000 people by late 2022. They are now weighing site options in El Paso proper and nearby Santa Teresa, New Mexico, as well as existing buildings in Mexico City to retrofit. The company also will build a new plant on land it owns in Tlaxcala, east of Mexico City.
“Our future is calling for a more resilient and sustainable supply chain and that’s exactly what we’re seeking to deliver,” said Annette Clayton, Schneider Electric North America’s President and CEO. "We're increasing capacity to minimize interruption risk when unforeseen challenges occur and reduce wait time for customers.”
In its statement, Schneider said it is focused on shortening its supply chain in North America and that it has invested more than $100 million this year and last in equipment and people to help set the stage for the new plants. Execs also said they have shored up their supply chain by bringing on board more than 100 alternate suppliers and making “strategic buys of industry-constrained raw materials.”
Schneider North America employs 33,000 people, about 19,000 of them in the United States, and last year had revenues of more than $8 billion, about 29% of the company’s total sales. Globally, France-based Schneider employs about 135,000 people.
