The iPhone 14 is undoubtedly a priority for Apple this year.
Apple is apparently seeking to prevent iPhone 14 shortages later this year by requesting key gadget maker Foxconn to hire iPhone assembly line employees in China sooner than it typically does.
Apple is also apparently talking to regional authorities to guarantee that iPhone 14 manufacturing is secured in the event of another Covid-19 breakout.
Foxconn, according to the United Daily News and 9to5Mac, is unusual in boosting its recruitment efforts this early in the year. But Apple allegedly wants Foxconn to guarantee its manufacturing factory in Zhengzhou, China, which is called iPhone City, is up to capacity in order to make up for missed output in other regions of China. As a result of the relative lack of coronavirus lockdowns in Zhengzhou, it seems natural that Apple would place an emphasis on the region’s manufacturing potential.
Workers who stay at the facility for at least 90 days are now eligible for a $1,286 incentive, up from the previous $984.
The worldwide chip scarcity and the Chinese government’s efforts to remove Covid-19 are the two main factors that have sparked Apple’s manufacturing concerns. Some consumers had to wait longer than normal to get their hands on Apple’s newest smartphone, the iPhone 13, due to supply issues. Apple is almost surely trying to prevent this from happening again.
A closed-loop manufacturing system has apparently been implemented at the company in order to prevent an epidemic of Covid-19. This implies that the majority of staff reside on-site and seldom depart for long periods of time. Additional safeguards being utilised include frequent testing, as well as all visitors needing a negative test result before being permitted to access the factory.
As Tim Cook pointed out during a recent earnings call, interruptions caused by Covid and an overall lack of silicon are only two of the issues Apple is now dealing with. Cook also highlighted that unfavourable exchange rates, loss of Russian sales and lower consumer spending because to a cost of living pressure were additional difficulties Apple must traverse. In the current quarter, Apple forecasts that these issues might cost the business between $4 billion and $8 billion.
It is possible, however, that Apple will be able to minimise the influence of these issues and maintain a relatively smooth manufacturing schedule for the iPhone 14.
For the first time in a long time, the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Max are expected to include USB-C ports, as well as a new A16 Bionic CPU that’s supposed to be speedier than ever before. Recent mock-ups may also have shown us how the design of each iPhone 14 model may differ.