Wuxi New District signed a letter of intent with the American data storage company Seagate to deepen cooperation on Nov 17, according to the Wuxi government.

The Party secretary of Wuxi, Li Xiaomin, said Seagate, a major supplier in the hard disc market, has made great achievements in Wuxi since it set up a branch here in 1995 and brought sophisticated technology and managerial expertise to the district. It’s an "example of success" for the investment of American high-tech enterprises in Wuxi.

He hoped that Seagate will increase its activity in Wuxi and bring more projects, with attendant industrial distribution, to the area, relying on China’s rapid expansion in cloud computing and the Internet of Things and Wuxi’s advantages of a sound business environment and preferential policies.

Seagate’s chairman and CEO Stephen J. Luczo said Seagate and Wuxi has forged a deep partnership over the past 20 years. He insisted that the two sides will deepen exchanges and cooperation.

Seagate developed the first 5.25-inch hard disc drive (HDD), the 5-megabyte ST-506, in 1980. They were a major supplier in the microcomputer market during the 1980s. Today Seagate along with Western Digital dominates the HDD market.

Seagate Technology International (Wuxi) Co., which opened in 1995, produces Head Stack/Gimbal Assemblies and manufactures hard disc drives.

Wuxi is Seagate's largest volume production site targeting the traditional personal computing market and the fast-growing consumer electronics (CE) sector.

The state-of-the-art 58,000 square meters facility contains highly automated and technology-intensive assembly systems, which are housed in a strictly controlled "clean room" environment that ensures the highest product quality.

Seagate Wuxi has earned many honors over the decades. It was named the Top Foreign Enterprise in China (1999-2003), and was the first on the list of Top 100 Wuxi Industrial Enterprises in 2003.

Its investment in Wuxi since 1995 has reached $567 million. This year, Seagate increased its registered capital of $100 million to initiate a new trade development pattern to boost sales and develop into the largest production and distribution base in China.