History (1999): Western Digital Closes Tuas, Singapore, Factory

After a pitiful 1998, things are shaking up at Western Digital .

From now on, all HDD production will be divided between two sites in Malaysia and Chai-Chee, Singapore.

WD’s second facility for high-end units, nearby in Tuas, Singapore, which opened in 1996 with a $12 million investment, will be closed, resulting in the departure of 750 employees.

WD’s WW employment will drop to roughly 12,000, compared to a peak of 16,000 in October 1997.

Additionally, its personal storage division and enterprise storage group will be combined into a single HDD operating unit, into the drive products division, led by executive Matt Massengill.

The enterprise storage operation in Rochester, MN, will nevertheless continue as the R&D center for server products.

This article is an abstract of news published on issue 133 on February 1999 from the former paper version of Computer Data Storage Newsletter.