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TWST: We would like to begin with a brief historical sketch of Multi-
Fineline Electronix and a picture of the things you're doing at the
present time.
Mr. Harding: The company was founded in 1984. At that time, it was
mostly serving the USA aerospace and military market because of the
Founders' experiences and associations with companies like US
Corporation, Boeing, and Rockwell. In 1987, I came to the company as a
consultant to find a replacement CEO. I was appointed the CEO in January
1988 and refocused the company away from the US aerospace business to
more of an industrial commercial business. That began in 1988 and
remains our focus today. This year, the company's revenue run rate is
about $500 million a year. In 1987, the company was much smaller with
revenue of less than $1 million. Early on we differentiated ourselves
in the industry by introducing a new concept related to how our
customers purchase flexible printed circuits. At that time in 1988-1989,
the electronics manufacturers mostly bought flexible printed circuits
themselves and primarily used them as replacements for cables. In the
rare instances when electronic components were placed on the flex, the
work was done by contract manufacturers. In fact, most of the contract
manufacturers were given the purchase order to assemble components onto
flexible printed circuits from the OEM; they in turn subcontracted the
flex portion to flex manufacturers. M-Flex pioneered the concept of one-
stop shopping where both assembly of the components onto the flex and
the manufacturing of the flex were supplied by our company. We became
the manufacturer that integrated the flex and the assembly of the
components onto the flex. That was initiated in 1989, and we've
continued to pursue and expand this strategy since then. It is one of
the major reasons for our growth.
Tickers included in this excerpt: MFLX
For more information call (212) 952 7433. The
Wall Street Transcript does not endorse any of the comments made by interviewees, and does
not make stock recommendations.
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