Japan's NEC Infrontia Corp will enter the Chinese market for business telephones in the spring by introducing the low-cost production and inventory-curtailing methods developed by Dell Inc.

NEC Infrontia Asia Pacific Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary established in Malaysia last February, will accept orders via the Internet from Chinese clients, including sellers of telephone equipment. Products will be manufactured at an NEC Infrontia plant in Thailand and at a new subcontracting plant that is to be built in Shenzhen by April. Goods will be produced only in the quantity ordered.

To hold down costs, NEC Infrontia will consolidate the production of goods for the Chinese market and other Asian countries. It will aim to deliver goods in about three to five days. Sales of keyphones – advanced multifunction business phones with IP (Internet protocol) compatibility – will be launched in Shanghai and Hong Kong in May. In the fiscal year ending March 31, 2005, sales will begin in Beijing and Guangzhou.