Computer manufacturer Bitcom has opened its assembly plant in Riyadh to produce notebooks and LCD screens.

The 2,000 sq ft Silicon Valley Factory for Information Technology will manufacture up to 700 units a day under the Bitcom brand when the facility comes on line before the end of this year.
“The Bitcom assembly plant in Riyadh heralds a new era for Saudi Arabia’s IT industry,” said Bitcom CEO Najeeb Al Ashqar.
The Bitcom factory will employ 20 people initially, but this will rise to 60 in the next year and a half — with Saudi nationals being encouraged to apply through an initiative with the country’s Human Resource Development Fund.
“Not only will the plant further enhance the kingdom’s capabilities as a nation that has IT credentials to more than match its regional neighbours, it will also offer opportunities for Saudi nationals to train and work in one of the most challenging and fast-paced industries in the world,” Al Ashqar said in his comments.
The factory will initially focus on producing laptops and LCD monitors for the Saudi enterprise, small to medium-sized business (SMB) and small office/home office (Soho) markets, but Al Ashqar said the company’s marketing would expand to other countries and include server and desktop production.
Al Ashqar said his company was investing $2million in the factory and the Bitcom brand — rising to $5million within the next 18 months.
He said capacity would also rise over the same period with the addition of two assembly lines to complement the two the facility already has — increasing the number of units produced to 1,500 a day.
Bitcom will face stiff competition from the likes of Acer and HP, both of which have assembly plants in the kingdom — the latter announcing at the beginning of May it was increasing production at its facility.