CBM comes to Corby

COMMODORE is now well advanced with its plan to establish a major manufacturing facility for its home computers in the UK at Corby in Northamptonshire.

When the plant becomes operational in September, European manufacture of home computers will be transferred there from Commodore’s West German plant in Braunschweig, which will then concentrate on the production of the company’s business computers.

The Corby factory aims initially to produce 200,000 Vic 20 and Commodore 64 micros a month — with the capacity to nearly double that rate.

By the end of this year, Commodore hopes to be employing 600 people at Corby with that number rising to more than 1,000 over two years.

Two thirds of the UK plant’s production will be for export, to the rest of Europe, the Middle East and Australia.