Largest Electronics Manufacturing Plants in Brazil

Brazil is the country where some of the largest manufacturing plants for electronics in Latin America are located. In this article we will list some of the largest electronics manufacturers operating in the country.

Brazilian Regulation and National Manufacturing

Brazilian regulation applies high taxes to imported products, including categories such as appliances, computers, telecommunication equipment and other types of electronics. This means that imported products are sold at an abnormally higher price than nationally assembled ones, and are therefore hardly able to compete in this market.

Electronics that make use of foreign technologies are offered significantly less taxation burdens in case they are manufactured in Brazil, as the result of a policy by the country’s government designed to incentivize the creation of new workplaces and to promote the education of the country’s workforce. Given the size of the Brazilian market and the opportunities provided, many electronics manufacturers consider the option of establishing operations in the country as more viable when compared to solely exporting products to Brazil.

According to Abinee, or the Brazilian Electric and Electronic Industry Association, this sector represents a total of BRL 153.8 billion. One interesting aspect about electronics manufactured in Brazil is that, due to the tax incentives offered to manufacturers operating and shipping locally, most of these products remain limited to the national market and are not exported. Data from January 2015 by the association reveals that the export of electronics from Brazil account for USD 384 million, while the total imports represent USD 3.3 billion.

Location of Electronics Manufacturers

The location of the largest electronics manufacturers in Brazil is related to two major factors. The first of which are the specific tax exemptions offered by municipality governments interested in the creation of workplaces and overall economic development brought by the installation of a manufacturing plant.

Perhaps the most notable example of this factor is the Manaus Free Trade Zone, an area in the city of Manaus where industries are offered total exemption of taxation on imports, industrialized products and urban areas, just to name a few. The city, located in the northern state of Amazonas, remains one of the main focus points for electronic manufacturing plants in Brazil, but many other regional governments in the country are capable of offering tax exemptions to companies interested in establishing operations in its proximities.

The second most relevant factor to the location of electronics manufacturing plants in Brazil is the proximity to distribution centers and the consumer market, which are mostly located in the Southeastern and Southern states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Paraná. Not surprisingly, these are the states that house some of the largest electronics manufacturing plants in Brazil.

LG

Korean electronics giant LG operates a manufacturing complex in the city of Taubaté, located in the state of São Paulo, where products such as cell phones, computers and televisions are assembled. The facilities are located in a 1.6 million square meters site donated by the municipality government.

Foxconn

Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Foxconn operates a large facility in the city of Jundiaí, in the state of São Paulo. The manufacturing plant serves as the main production center for companies such as Apple, where the iPhone and iPad product lines are assembled.

Foxconn is currently building a 40 thousand square meter facility in the city of Itu, also in the state of São Paulo, which should be completed by the end of 2015.

Flextronics

Singapore-headquartered electronics manufacturer Flextronics operates a facility in the city of Sorocaba, in the state of São Paulo. The manufacturing plant is responsible for the assembly of the GoPro line of cameras and a number of other outsourced products.

Flextronics also owns three other manufacturing plants in Brazil, two of which are in the city of Manaus and one in the city of Jaguariúna, in the State of São Paulo.

Dell

Global leader in manufacturing of computers, United States-headquartered company Dell operates a facility in the city of Hortolândia, in the state of São Paulo. The plant is specialized in the assembly of desktops, portable computers and servers, with yearly production of over a million units in total.

Multilaser

Brazilian computer components and accessories producer Multilaser owns a manufacturing complex in the city of Extrema, located in the state of Minas Gerais. The plant, sized at 17 thousand meters, is responsible for the assembly of products such as smartphones, tablets, memory modules and computer accessories.

Positivo

National computer manufacturer Positivo operates a facility in the city of Curitiba, capital of the state of Paraná. The plant is responsible for the assembly of over 380 thousand desktops, motherboards, tablets and portable computers per month. Positivo also owns manufacturing facilities in the states of Amazonas and Bahia.

Taiwanese-based electronics manufacturer AOC operates a facility in the city of Jundiaí, located in the state of São Paulo. The 30 square meter plant is responsible for the production of LCD and LED screens, all-in-one computers and tablets. The company also owns a manufacturing plant in the city of Manaus.

Lenovo

Chinese computer manufacturer Lenovo operates an assembly facility in the city of Itu, located in the state of São Paulo. The 52 thousand square meters plant is responsible for the production of servers, workstations, laptops, all-in-ones and tablets, with close to 200 thousand units produced per month.

The Leadership Group

National computer components and accessories manufacturer The Leadership Group owns an assembly facility in the city of Curitiba. The 5.1 thousand square meters plant is responsible for the production of desktops and notebooks, with over 60 thousand units shipped in total per month. The Leadership Group also owns a manufacturing plant in the city of Ilhéus, located in the state of Bahia.

IntelBras

Brazilian electronics and telecommunication components manufacturer IntelBras operates a facility in the city of São José, located in the state of Santa Catarina. The 18 thousand square meter manufacturing plant is responsible for the production of computer equipment and security systems. Intelbras also owns facilities in Manaus and Santa Rita do Sapucaí, located in the state of Minas Gerais.

Tecsys

National manufacturer of satellite telecommunication equipment and Nano PC’s operates a facility in the city of São José dos Campos, located in the state of São Paulo. Following a recent expansion in the facility, the company states that close to 40 thousand Nano PC units are manufactured per year.

Smart Modular Technologies

United States-headquartered memory components manufacturer Smart Modular Technologies owns a facility in the city of Atibaia, located in the state of São Paulo. The plant is responsible for the assembly of memory modules and products such as solid state drives, close to 70 thousand units of which are produced per year.

Was there a large electronics manufacturer left out of this list? Let us know by sending an email at info@techinbrazil.com.