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KEMET CORPORATION TO INVEST $72 MILLION IN SURFACE-MOUNT MANUFACTURING CAPACITY ----------------------------------------------------------------- Expanding Global Sales to Mainland China
Greenville, South Carolina (July 24, 1997) - KEMET Corporation
(Nasdaq/NM:KMET) announced at the Company's Annual Meeting
that it plans to invest approximately $72 million in fiscal 1998 in its surface-mount
manufacturing capacity to meet growing worldwide demand for its ceramic
and tantalum capacitors. It was also announced that the Company has
established direct sales offices in both Shanghai and Beijing, as well as a
new global logistics hub in Shanghai to serve the rapidly growing mainland
China electronics market.
"KEMET plans to expand its manufacturing capacity for surface-mount capacitors
to meet growing world-wide demand from our key customers," stated KEMET
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer David E. Maguire. "Over 75% of our
current manufacturing capacity of 65 million capacitors a day is focused on
surface-mount technology. We plan to increase our production capacity of
surface-mount capacitors with the expansion of three plants.
"We are adding 70,000 square feet to our Ceramic Technology Center in
Fountain Inn, South Carolina, and are doubling the manufacturing clean rooms
at our ceramic surface-mount plant in Shelby, North Carolina.
These investments will complement and support our recently completed
240,000 square-foot ceramic surface-mount manufacturing plant in
Monterrey, Mexico. In addition, we are doubling our anode manufacturing
capacity at our Simpsonville, South Carolina, tantalum surface-mount plant to
maintain our position as the number one supplier of tantalum capacitors in the world.
"The expansion of our Ceramic Technology Center will allow KEMET to reduce
the lead time from development to full-scale production of new products. In addition,
we plan to invest approximately $23 million in research and development in fiscal 1998.
We believe this increased level of investment will expand our leadership in 'first-to-market'
new products."
"We believe our increased manufacturing capacity will allow us to aggressively expand
our sales and logistics networks into mainland China," continued Mr. Maguire.
"Our just-in-time delivery network will allow us to supply our capacitors to China,
or virtually anywhere in the world, within one to two days. We believe our added
capacity, combined with our continued focus on quality, delivery and service,
will result in KEMET's gaining market share on a world-wide basis in the coming year."
The Company also reported that stockholders elected the following directors to serve
three-year terms:
Charles E. Volpe - retired President and Chief Operating Officer of KEMET Corporation
Charles E. Corpening - Vice President of Citicorp Venture Capital, Ltd., a subsidiary of Citibank
KEMET Corporation, headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina, is the largest manufacturer
of solid tantalum capacitors in the world and the second largest manufacturer of multilayer
ceramic capacitors in the United States. KEMET's common stock is listed on
The Nasdaq Stock Market's National Market under the symbol KMET. Company
information is available via the Internet (http://www.kemet.com).
This release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 involving risks and
uncertainties discussed in detail in the Company's Securities and Exchange
Commission filings and reports, including the Company's 1997 Annual
Report to Stockholders. Actual results may vary due to these or other risks
and uncertainties.
KEMET, Copyright 1996
P.O. Box 5928
Greenville, SC 29606