Acer’s Boksburg-based plant employs about 350 full-time staff, rising to roughly 550 during peak periods. (Image supplied by Acer)
Taiwanese PC maker Acer is expanding local production in South Africa, with selected Acer Nitro VG0-Series gaming monitors now being assembled at its local facility using the same standards as its global plants.
The company says the move supports local jobs, skills development and potentially lower prices.
Glenn Du Toit, country manager at Acer Africa, tells ITWeb via e-mail that the Boksburg-based plant – opened in 2022 – employs about 350 full-time staff, rising to roughly 550 during peak periods.
“What’s great is that the 80% of the staff employed at the facility are women from the surrounding areas,” says Du Toit.
He explains that the site was previously an Alcatel factory and has since been upgraded as operations expanded into contract electronics manufacturing.
The facility imports IPS panels and key components, integrates them with locally-assembled electronics, and subjects each unit to testing and inspection before retail release. QR-based tracking is used during final checks.
“Local assembly allows us to bring world-class gaming technology closer to our consumers while contributing meaningfully to the local economy,” says Du Toit. “These monitors are built to meet the expectations of serious gamers, with the added pride of being assembled right here at home.
Acer says 80% of the staff employed at the facility are women from the surrounding areas. (Image supplied by Acer)
“We are working with other partners to see how we can expand our local assembly or manufacturing beyond just monitors in South Africa.”
The locally-assembled Nitro VG-Series models include IPS panels with 178-degree viewing angles, response times down to 0.5ms and refresh rates up to 240Hz (DisplayPort) and 200Hz (HDMI). They support adaptive sync technologies, including AMD FreeSync Premium and NVIDIA G-SYNC compatibility, as well as HDR on selected models. Colour coverage reaches up to 90% of the DCI-P3 gamut, and eye-comfort features such as flicker-free backlighting and low blue-light modes are included.
Three models are currently assembled locally:
- Acer Nitro VGZ240 X1: 24-inch Full HD IPS, up to 240Hz, 0.5ms, HDR10, AMD FreeSync.
- Acer Nitro VGZ270 X1: 27-inch Full HD IPS, up to 240Hz, 0.5ms, HDR10, AMD FreeSync.
- Acer Nitro VG270U X3ZA: 27-inch WQHD IPS, up to 200Hz, 1ms, DisplayHDR 400, AMD FreeSync Premium.
All models have slim bezels, VESA mount support and a three-year exchange warranty.
Du Toit adds that assembling monitors locally reduces some logistics and import costs for large displays, which could improve pricing and availability.
Acer is working with partners to see how it can expand its local assembly or manufacturing beyond monitors. (Image supplied by Acer).
“When the local Acer team presented the strategy to our global team to invest in South Africa and Africa as a whole, the journey would require us to grow organically and sustainably. It would make no business sense to be artificially supporting prices down and undercutting the market for a short-term spike,” he notes.
“We needed to be deliberate and accountable, as if we were spending our own personal cash. The model made sense and we are so thrilled to have delivered on our commitment to all stakeholders. What this means is that we are now being given latitude to expand on our local projects as we move into 2026.
“These new projects are going to help us grow our PC business across the entire SADC region. While we are in the last stretch of the planning phase of our next localisation project, we, unfortunately, cannot officially announce our plans just yet. If all goes to plan, we should go live within the next six months,” Du Toit concludes.
