Irvine-based Gateway Inc. said Tuesday that it plans to open a plant at a U.S. site that it hasn’t picked yet.
The computer maker said 300 workers will staff the plant initally. The facility could grow “significantly,” Chief Executive Wayne Inouye said in a statement.
Gateway officials are talking with state and local officials at several locations. The company expects to name the site during the fourth quarter.
Gateway said it’s talking to potential partners and still is deciding whether it will operate the plant as a joint venture or as a company-owned operation.
The plant will assemble made-to-order servers and desktop and laptop computers. The company said it decided to build the plant after winning a number of government, education and business computer pacts.
This year Gateway has won deals to supply computers to the University of Arizona, Navy and Los Angeles Unified School District, among others.
Meanwhile, Gateway also said Tuesday that John Goldsberry will take over as chief financial officer at the end of the month.
Goldsberry, the company’s operations chief since joining the computer maker six months ago, is set to replace Rod Sherwood, who announced his retirement from Gateway earlier this year.
Goldsberry, former chief financial officer of TrueSpectra Inc. and Good Guys Inc., was hired as chief financial officer by eMachines Inc. in early 2004. He led negotiations that resulted in Gateway buying eMachines last year.
Sherwood was a Gateway worker who transitioned to Irvine after eMachines chief executive Inouye took over the former Poway-based company. Inouye replaced many top Gateway executives with those from eMachines after taking over.
Gateway shares slumped earlier this month after the company lowered its 2005 earnings forecast. The computer maker cited pressure from competition.
