The opening of the facility looks to be especially significant given that in January Intel announced that it would be cutting its workforce by five percent this year.
Over the past three years Intel has pumped almost three billion pesos (220 million dollars) into expanding its Guadalajara research facility set up 13 years ago to enhance the development of its computing platforms.
The new installation will also include technical labs, office space, a technology museum for children, and an IT lab to support small and medium sized businesses.
Intel opened the Design Center in Tlaquepaque with a staff of around 30. It has since grown to house around 850 employees, many of them local engineers with masters and PhDs, who research and develop new projects for computers, smartphones and servers and focus on education and design solutions.
The new facility covers 25,000 square meters and has a capacity for 1,400 employees.
Speaking in 2010 after Intel announced the new investment in its Desgin Center, Mexico District Manager Scott Overson highlighted the importance of Guadalajara to the firm. “Everything that happens on the Internet is related to Guadalajara; for example, anything related to the new generation of smart devices is seen there,” he said.
Overson added that he and other executives were constantly surprised by the quality of Mexican designers and said the country develops “world-class talent.”
At this week’s opening, Jesus Palomino, director general of the center, noted that “the new products that (Intel) will be marketing in the coming years will be developed in Guadalajara.”
Intel has been in Mexico for more than two decades and is heavily involved in educational projects here. Through its Intel Teach program, the company helps basic level teachers improve their teaching methods through technology. K-12 teachers integrate technology into classrooms and promote student-centered approaches, preparing them with critical skills for success in the digital world. The program is delivered through public-private partnerships with government ministries and teacher education institutions worldwide. The company boasts that with more than ten million teachers trained in 70 countries, Intel Teach is the largest, most successful program of its kind.