Microsoft Puerto Rico to Spend $65 Million
 on New Production Facility

by. Marialba Martinez

Microsoft Puerto Rico will invest $65 million to add a 90,000-square-foot facility to its 45,000-square-foot manufacturing complex in Humacao to produce three new production format-increasing the island's total manufacturing and distribution of Microsoft CDs and DVDs to the Americas from 70% to 95%.

The three new technologies will include pre-editing and editing of programming code to DVD digital format and a mastering process using a sophisticated laser-digital codification system; a new generation edge-to-edge hologram imaging system that will make counterfeiting even more difficult; and a serialization process that identifies each DVD and CD

that Microsoft is developing and that it will be implemented for the first time at the Puerto Rico plant.

Scheduled to begin production in 2006, the expansion will add 48 new jobs to the existing 84, for a total of 132 by startup.

  In addition to production facilities, the new facility will include a new operation center, manage vendors order processing and negotiation, as well as provide other export services for the region.

Microsoft Humacao, the company's only optical media manufacturing facility worldwide, will also produce Microsoft upcoming version, code-named Loghorn.

"Microsoft is proud an exited about this expansion, with is a testimony of Puerto Rico's capacity to successfully complete in high-technology industry," said Rodolfo Acevedo,   general manager of Microsoft Operation Puerto Rico, LLC.

  "The quality of the people has been instrumental in out ability to successfully adapt over time to the production needs of the demanding software industry.

 With these new investments, Puerto Rico will be at the forefront in the manufacturing  of next generation

software media products and the use of innovative antipiracy technology."

Microsoft has occupied a 45,000-suqare-foot building in Humacao since 1990.  In 2001, the company invested $4 millions and retrained 32 employees to install the antifalsification technology found in Windows XP's hologram, which made the software difficult to falsify.  The new facility will increase production from 30 million CDs and DVDs in 2001 to 75 millions with the expansion.