After converting an abandoned manufacturing plant originally built for solar-panel manufacturer First Solar Inc., Apple Inc. has started shipping sapphire glass from its new production site in Mesa, Ariz. The facility's revival and ongoing construction continue after months of political maneuvering, the price collapse of solar panels and the subsequent fire sale to save the multimillion-dollar development.
Apple is unwilling to disclose much about the plant's output, but technology blogs and analysts say the firm is working with GT Advanced Technologies, New Hampshire, to develop a thinner, more scratch-resistant alternative to Corning's Gorilla Glass for the next generation of iPhone screens.