Seagate says drive shortages to last through 2012
updated 02:30 pm EST, Wed February 1, 2012
Seagate talks about hard drive production in 2012
Storage drive maker Seagate has updated its previous outlook on hard drive shortages due to the floods in Thailand. During its latest results call, it said shipments will be affected well into 2012, and the total shortage is to reach about 150 million units. Another storage drive maker, Western Digital, has stated production volumes won't be resumed until the summer.
December saw Seagate produce a maximum of 110 million drives and ship 119 million, but quickly run dry in the face of demand for 175 million units. Production during the fourth quarter fell by four percent due to component shortages resulting from the floods. During the first quarter of 2012, Seagate expects to ship a minimum of 60 million drives.
Seven of the top ten component suppliers of Seagate were affected by the floods and not Seagate's own factories. The suppliers are being assisted when possible, with funding for capital equipment if it was damaged by the torrent of water.
The companies Seagate sells drives to have also began to enter long-term contracts spanning a number of years in some cases, which is new for the industry. More than 60 percent of the drives Seagate will manufacture this year fall under such contracts, the company estimated. [via ComputerWorld]
