Contract manufacturer Solectron Corp. sourced the raw materials, made the circuit boards and did the assembly.

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He insisted that the machinery on the 165-foot assembly line be configured to move the circuit boards from right to left as they got built, so that the process would look better to visitors who watched from the viewing gallery.

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Guiding a reporter through the crowded plant, the former manager of an IBM circuit-board factory points to places where Dell can shave off a few seconds of assembly time or move completed products out the door a couple of minutes faster.

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