The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said on Wednesday, Jan. 9, that the manufacturing facility of Japanese tech giant Canon in Batangas will employ 5,000 workers when it becomes fully operational by 2014.
In January last year, Canon announced that it was investing six billion yen to put up the plant at the First Philippine Industrial Park in Tanauan City.
The facility, which will start operating in April 2013, will manufacture laser printers, accessories, and parts of Canon cameras and other products.
DOLE secretary Rosalinda Baldoz recently met with Soichiro Tabe, president of Canon Information Technologies, or ci-tech, who cited the work ethic of Filipino workers and the country?s strategic location as among the reasons for the company?s expansion.
?I am pleased with this piece of good news,? Baldoz said to Tabe during a 30-minute meeting at the DOLE office in Intramuros, Manila.
?Your expansion into manufacturing is a seal of approval for the country?s economic vibrancy and attests to the resurgent investors? confidence in the Philippines,? Baldoz said.
Tabe was accompanied by Rolando P. Martinez, ci-tech Vice President for general administration, and Cezar M. Gatmaytan Jr., ci-tech vice president for engineering.
Another Canon subsidiary, Canon IT Solutions (Philippines), Inc. (CITSP) will also start to operate this year for Canon?s system integration needs.
This will bring to four the Canon companies operating in the country, of which ci-tech is the longest-operating.
ci-tech, established in August 1991, is Canon Group?s largest overseas research and development subsidiary. It develops products and technologies in images, network, and communications systems, and designs, develops, and tests software and hardware. All of ci-tech?s products are for export. It has over 500 employees.
The other subsidiary, established in April 1997, is Canon Marketing Philippines (CMP), which is into sales and after-sales services and marketing.
